


Everything's Changing

by bad_ash10



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Family Feels, Gen, Parent Melinda May, Parent Phil Coulson, Protective Melinda May, Protective Phil Coulson, Skye | Daisy Johnson Needs a Hug, Unplanned Pregnancy, philindaisy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:01:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 36,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23815813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bad_ash10/pseuds/bad_ash10
Summary: Daisy's unexpectedly pregnant. Wanting to escape the confines of the base, she calls the only people she can think of: Coulson & May. As her basically her Shield "parents", they invite her to the house they just purchased after their retirement. Not long after Daisy's arrival, May also gets some shocking news... Will Daisy quit Shield or will she find a way to balance being a mom and keep saving the world?
Relationships: Melinda May & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Phil Coulson & Melinda May & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Phil Coulson & Skye | Daisy Johnson, Phil Coulson/Melinda May
Comments: 160
Kudos: 310





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I got a wild and crazy idea, and I'm going to see where it leads. I really don't know what this fic is going to turn out to be, and it's constantly evolving. It was supposed to be a quick one shot, but when I looked up and saw that it was already 6 pages and I still had more to say, I nixed that idea.  
> So sit back, buckle in, and we will see where we end up together!

Daisy curled herself into a ball on the bed. How could she have been this thoughtless? She was always so careful and the one time she didn’t force the issue is when something happened: she got pregnant. 

She couldn’t stand the thought of going to the daily briefing, and said she was sick with the stomach flu to avoid going. It was close to the truth since she kept throwing up every few hours from her morning sickness. Mack could handle it since he was the director, now that Coulson and May had retired. She needed the time to think. To process.

\----------

By the second afternoon of being holed up in her bunk, there was a knock at the door and she her Jemma say “Daisy, I’ve brought you some food and water.”

“You poor dear! It’s no fun being sick.” Simmons said when Daisy finally opened the door. “Do you need me to do anything? Clean sheets? New towels? Laundry?” Simmons had opened her mouth to say something else, but stopped when she saw the tears welling in Daisy’s eyes. “Are you alright?”

She sniffed and wiped her eyes before reaching for the tray. “I’m fine, just tired. Thanks for the soup, Jem.” Daisy managed a small smile that seemed to put Simmons at ease.

Daisy wasn’t sure what to do- could she even raise a baby with her job as it was? Either way, she couldn’t claim to be sick forever. She just wanted to get out of the base and have some time to clear her head.

\----------

She picked up her phone and dialed Coulson. Daisy knew he and May had just bought a house a few weeks ago- maybe they had a spare bedroom.

It wasn’t Coulson who answered though- it was May. “Daisy.” It was abrupt, but not unfriendly.

She was silent and unsure what to say.

Melinda’s voice lost the abruptness when she heard only silence. “Daisy? Are you ok?” she asked softly.

Daisy sniffed before answering thickly. “Can I come stay with you guys for a few days?”

She heard Phil in the background, “Who’re you talking to, Mel?” and pictured her holding up a finger to silence him.

“Of course, Dais. Do you want us to come get you? We can be there first thing in the morning.” Melinda said warmly.

Daisy managed to get out a choked “Mmhmm.”

There was a bit of rustling and she could here May and Coulson talking softly in the background. After a few seconds Melinda said, “Never mind, we are leaving now. We will see you in about 2 hours. Can you be ready?”

Daisy managed another “mmhmm.”

“Good. We’ll see you soon.”

\----------

Daisy shoveled some clothes into a duffel bag, grabbed her tooth brush and was soon ready to go. She realized she would have to let Mack know she was taking some of her accumulated personal time and would be off base, so she sat and wrote him an email while she waited. 

Soon enough there was a knock at her door, and Coulson called softly, “It’s us.”

She threw open the door and practically fell into the two of them. Coulson wrapped her into a strong hug as she sobbed, whispering reassurances to her that only made her want to cry harder.

May rubbed Daisy’s back softly, “Are you ready or do you want to stay here for a little?”

“No, we can go,” she mumbled into Coulson’s shoulder, missing the concerned look that May and Coulson shared on her behalf.

\----------

Daisy hopped into the back seat of the SUV out of habit. May surprised her though by opening the opposite door and asking, “Would it be ok if I rode back here with you?”

A little surprised, Daisy nodded. “I’d like that.” It wasn’t a big gesture for some, but from May, it was huge.

Coulson looked in the rear-view mirror and asked kindly, “Did you tell Mack you were leaving?”

Daisy nodded, “Yeah. I sent him an email.”

“Good. We will be home before you know it.” He gave her a small encouraging smile.

After a few minutes had passed, Melinda put her hand on Daisy’s knee, and Daisy readily took her hand, gratefully threading her fingers through May’s.

\-----------

She must have fallen asleep, because soon, she heard, “Wake up, Dais,” Melinda said softly, putting a hand on her shoulder. “We’re home.”

Daisy opened her eyes and blinked blearily up at May. “What time is it?”

“After midnight.”

Daisy was half laying in May's lap and sat up slowly, still blinking sleep from her eyes. And then, she saw it - the large white farmhouse. “It’s gorgeous.” She turned and gave May a half smile.

Just then Coulson opened the back hatch of the vehicle to grab her bag. “What do you think of the house I picked out?”

May scoffed. “ _You_ picked out?”

Daisy grinned as she hopped out of the car.

May lead her up the stairs to an impressive porch and through a welcoming front door. Boxes were still piled in the entryway and the rooms off either side, but she immediately knew it was perfect for May and Coulson.

“If you’ll follow me, mi lady?” Coulson said with a quick bow and heading for the stairs.

Daisy grinned again. “Wow. Five stars for service.”

“Don’t encourage him,” May said rolling her eyes as she locked the door behind them.

Off the upstairs landing there were several doors. Daisy followed Coulson through one, expecting a guest room, but instead found herself standing in what could only be the master. “Oh, I can sleep on the couch if you guys don’t have a guest bedroom.”

“Nonsense. You and Mel are going to stay here and I’ll take the couch. We’ve got a spare bedroom and even ordered a bed for you last week, but the rest of the furniture was delayed. Apparently our dining room chairs were on back order and it's holding everything else up, too.”

“Really, I can stay on the couch.” Daisy pointed a thumb back toward the doorway.

Melinda walked through the doorway behind them, “I can stay on the couch with Phil, if you’d be more comfortable by yourself.”

She sighed heavily, knowing they wouldn’t let it go. “Fine, I give up. I’ll stay in here with May.”

\----------

Daisy slept fitfully, waking every couple of hours until dawn. She wanted to get up, but knew the second her head left the pillow the nausea would overwhelm her almost immediately. She didn’t want to explain herself to May and Coulson first thing this morning.

Rolling over, she saw May was still asleep next to her. May had always looked great for her age, but Daisy noticed how much younger she looked without constantly having the weight of Shield on her shoulders. She wondered how her own life would look if she left, too.

After mulling over her what it would be like to live without Shield, without the only family she knew, Daisy finally decided to get up, and was immediately sprinting to the en suite bathroom. Morning sickness was the worst, and she was trying her hardest to be quiet to avoid waking May. Obviously, her effort wasn’t enough because May was soon behind her, gently rubbing her back and placing a cool rag on the nape of her neck.

“Simmons said you had the stomach flu the other day,” Melinda said simply.

Daisy got the sinking feeling that May somehow knew the truth, but she just nodded as she leaned against the cool porcelain of the bathtub and closed her eyes.

Melinda left her for a moment and returned with a cool bottle of water for Daisy. “Drink a few sips of this, Dais.”

She did as she was told as Melinda turned on the shower and pulled a fluffy towel out of the cabinet for her.

“Don’t let Phil tell you he picked out the towels. These were all me,” she said with a wink at Daisy. Who knew post-Shield May was so _different_?

“Thank you,” Daisy said sincerely.

\----------

When she got out of the shower, she found Coulson had made her favorite cinnamon toast and left it with coffee and juice on the bedside table, along with a note that read:

_We’re downstairs, but Melinda thought you would probably want to go back to sleep after your shower. Join us when you’re up to it!_

Daisy was so touched by their thoughtfulness, and realized they were right. She was exhausted. After a few bites of toast, she immediately buried herself in the fluffy white duvet and fell back into a deep sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Daisy came downstairs around lunch time, hair still damp and wearing an old baggy t-shirt and flannel pajama pants. She followed the sound of their voices until she found them unpacking boxes in one of the rooms off the foyer.

“Can I help you guys unpack anything?”

They both turned to look at her.

Coulson smiled broadly. “Sure! We need a tie breaker on where to put some things anyway.”

They worked for close to an hour before May stopped them for food. “Do you want sandwiches or leftovers?”

“Depends on who cooked the leftovers.” Daisy said with a note of sarcasm.

“Is that a shot at my cooking?” May asked. At Daisy’s smirk May continued, “Don’t worry, my mom made your favorite bao that I can steam for us if you want.”

“Yes!” Daisy and Coulson said in unison.

\----------

Daisy only ate half of her bun, unable to stomach any more. She noticed May glance at her plate, but she made no comment.

Trying to cover for herself, Daisy said “I guess after being sick, I don’t have my appetite back yet.”

May nodded, seemingly unconvinced, but Coulson at least seemed oblivious, saying, “Probably going to take a few days to get back to normal,” before he ate another bun.

After lunch, Daisy and May went to work again unpacking boxes in the living room while Phil went to work outside pruning some rosebushes.

The silence was killing Daisy. She wanted so badly to tell May what was going on, to ask her opinion, and to ask if May thought she could be a mother. The only thing stopping her was knowing that things would change forever once she said it out loud. Until she then, she could pretend just a little while longer.

“Why here, May?” Daisy asked just to break the silence.

“What?”

“What made you guys buy a house out here? It’s the middle of nowhere.”

May gave her a small, but genuine smile. “We had to find a happy medium. We wanted a _real_ retirement, not one where we could run back into work all the time. But we also wanted to be close enough that we could have visitors.”

Daisy nodded and continued unpacking the box in front of her. “Makes sense, I guess. It doesn’t hurt that this house is incredible.”

\----------

Keeping busy with unpacking kept Daisy’s mind from wandering. For most of the day, she could almost forget why she was there, but the thoughts were always just below the surface.

After dinner, they watched a movie all piled together on the couch, and Daisy had almost told them her secret. Ultimately, she decided one more day wouldn’t hurt, but as they changed into pajamas and brushed their teeth, it seemed May had other plans.

“Daisy?” May asked as Daisy was putting her toothbrush back in the holder.

“Yeah?” she answered, flipping off the bathroom light and making her way to where Melinda was sitting on the edge of the bed. “What’s up?” she said flopping down next to May.

Melinda looked at her seriously. “Phil and I were talking this morning, and we just want you to know if you want or need to stay here on a long-term basis, you’d be more than welcome.”

Daisy dropped her head. “You know, don’t you?”

May did not answer at first, and when she did speak, she instead said, “I used to imagine my life without Shield, you know.”

How was May so damn perceptive? “Really?” Daisy asked softly.

May shrugged. “When I was with Andrew. I said I would stay in the field even if we had kids, but I don’t think I ever really meant it.”

Daisy stared at a spot on the floor, fiddling with a spot on her sweatpants.

“But, there were a few female field agents with kids who were completely happy with their work-life balance, so who knows.” She shrugged light heartedly. “I can’t change how my life has played out, but if it had been different back then? I wouldn’t have this now. Phil. You.”

Daisy gave May a small smile. “You talk more now. Being away from Shield seems to be good for you.”

“I’m happier now,” May said with a smile. She leaned over and pulled Daisy into a tight hug. “All I’m saying, is that whatever you decide to do, it will be the right choice because it was _your_ decision. Whatever you need, we’re here.”

“Does Coulson know?” she asked into May’s shoulder.

Melinda scoffed and released Daisy. “I haven’t told him. So, I doubt it.”

Daisy chuckled softly. “Right. And how did you know, anyway?”

For the first time ever, Daisy thought May looked a little, sheepish? 

“I saw the pregnancy test in your bunk when we got there to pick you up.” She saw Daisy’s worried look, and continued, “Don’t worry, I took care of it in case Simmons goes in to try to clean up for you.”

“Thanks.”

May patted her knee reassuringly and stood, walking to her own side of the bed before pulling back the covers and climbing in. “Do you want help finding a doctor?”

Daisy was halfway through climbing into bed stopped in her tracks. She seemed incredulous at the thought of a doctor. “What?”

“You haven’t seen one yet, have you?”

“Well… no… I…” Daisy looked to be almost on the verge of tears. “I didn’t even think about it.”

“Hey, that’s ok. You’ve had a lot on your plate lately. Come here.” May patted the bed beside her, inviting Daisy to lay next to her.

Daisy crawled over to May and curled into her side. “Why didn’t I think about seeing a doctor?”

May pushed Daisy’s hair back and shushed her gently. “It’s alright. You’ve just been stressed, sweetheart.”

“May, what kind person doesn’t think to call the doctor when they’re pregnant?” Daisy choked out a sob as she realized just how unprepared she was for what was to come.

“Shhhh, Daisy. It’s ok.” Melinda said quietly as she held her tighter.

May continued whispering reassurances to Daisy until she had finally stopped crying, but she didn’t let her go. “I promise everything is going to work itself out. Ok?”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * trigger warning - Daisy alludes that she may be considering an abortion. Don't worry- she's not getting one, but skip this chapter if the discussion makes you uncomfortable.

“Melinda?” She heard her name but was too close to sleep to answer.

A hand gently touched her shoulder. “Mel? Sorry to kick you out, but you’ve got to go upstairs so I can go to sleep.”

May stirred and opened one tired eye to look at Phil.

He grinned when he realized she was awake. “I’m glad we’re getting the rest of our furniture tomorrow. I don’t mind giving my spot in the bedroom to Daisy, but this old couch is killing my back.”

She yawned widely. “How’d the movie end?”

“I really don’t know. The top kept spinning, but it wobbled, so Leo DiCaprio may or may not be trapped in a dream.”

May made a face. “Sometimes, I’m glad we missed some of these movies while we were busy saving the world.”

He leaned over to kiss her softly. “I love you, but I know you’re stalling having to walk up the stairs. We can have a discourse on the movie tomorrow.”

She smiled. “I hate that you know me so well.”

Melinda stood, and her vision went black. She thought she was going to fall, but she felt Phil catch her and keep her upright. Thankfully after a moment, her vision cleared, and she was fine again.

“Are you alright, babe?” He asked concernedly.

“Yeah, I… I think I just stood up too fast.”

He didn’t look convinced. “Is Daisy getting you sick? I know she’s still not back on her feet.”

It had been three days since Daisy arrived, and she still hadn’t told Phil why she was staying with them. After making a mental note to talk to Daisy, May said, “No. I just stood up too fast. No big deal.”

“You almost passed out. Seems like a big deal to me.”

She scoffed. “Phil, don’t worry so much. Good night.” She leaned up to kiss him. “I love you.”

\----------

May woke the next morning again to the sounds of Daisy’s morning sickness. She felt bad for Daisy. At least two or three times each day, the kid was running to the bathroom.

She got out of bed and tiptoed downstairs to grab Daisy a bottle of water, but by the time she got back, Daisy had already climbed back into bed and hidden under the duvet.

“I got you some water, Daisy.”

“Can you open it for me?” came the muffled voice from beneath the blankets.

May obliged and nudged Daisy’s leg gently to let her know to grab it.

She poked her head and one hand out of the blanket and took the water gratefully. “I feel like death.”

“I know you do.” She paused briefly. “I don’t mean to push, but I did some research on doctors for you, but they all want you to be at least 9 or 10 weeks before they can see you.”

Daisy pulled her phone off the nightstand to consult her calendar. “I think I’d be 11 tomorrow. I… uh... didn’t notice at first.”

Just then Phil knocked and stuck his head through the doorway. “Can I come get some clothes for the day? The furniture is scheduled for delivery in about an hour. Well, technically they said between 9 am and 5pm, so… Anywhere from about one to nine hours.”

May grinned, “Only if you don’t make us wait here with you all day.”

He came in and headed for the walk-in closet. “The joke’s on you, because I was going to ask you to go to town anyway. I need some more mulch for my rose bushes,” he said with an air of playful superiority in his voice.

“For your information, _Phillip_ , I was going to offer to take Daisy to town anyway.” May shot back playfully. “I thought she might want to pick out her own bedding and curtains.”

“So that means you can run by the lawn and garden supply for me then?” Coulson called from the closet.

Melinda smirked. “As you wish.”

Daisy had been following their banter like it was a tennis match, and suddenly piped up. “Oh my God. Did Melinda May just make a pop culture reference?” she asked incredulously.

“We’ve been catching up on what we missed while we were in Shield.” May said with a shrug.

Coulson called from the closet. “Actually, _The Princess Bride_ came out in the late 80s, so it was technically before we were agents.”

May rolled her eyes and looked over to Daisy. “See what I have to live with?”

“I heard that!”

\------------

A couple of hours later, May and Daisy were on their way to go shopping. May pulled a piece of paper out of her jacket pocket and passed it to Daisy.

“What’s this?” Daisy questioned.

“A list of suggestions. All OBGYNs in about a 2-hour radius who have great credentials.”

“Oh. Um…. I guess I should call one.” Daisy looked over the list apprehensively. “Who do you like best?”

Melinda pointed one out as best she could while driving. “This one is who I’ve got an appointment scheduled with next week.”

Daisy’s head whipped around quickly. “WHAT?”

May smirked. "I know what you're thinking. I just meant I have a regular checkup. With all we’ve been dealing with with Shield these past few years, I haven’t had time for any wellness visits.”

Daisy shook her head. “Oh, man. I was just picturing what Coulson would’ve said if we were both pregnant.” Daisy chuckled softly before studying the list again. “Ok,” she said, steeling herself. “I guess I’ll call and see when they can get me in.”

\----------

In the end, they had spent several hours picking out bedding for Daisy’s room and curtains for the rest of the house. Daisy had even talked Melinda into an expensive table runner for the dining room.

As they were loading their purchases into the back of the SUV, Melinda’s vision went black again, and she swayed, dangerously close to falling over.

After a few seconds, her vision cleared, but she still felt lightheaded and dizzy. “Dais, do you mind driving home? I’m not really feeling well all of a sudden.”

“Really? Are you ok?” Daisy asked.

May shook her head slightly as if clearing her mind. “Yeah. I’m just a little lightheaded. Probably because we skipped lunch.”

Daisy was still concerned but agreed. “I can. Do you want to stop for some food or something?”

“No, I think I’ll be fine. We’re grabbing dinner on the way home anyway.”

\----------

Daisy thought she might be able to finish a full meal if they brought home Mexican food, so that was exactly what they did. As they pulled into the driveway with their dinner and purchases in tow, the furniture truck was leaving.

“Oh, good. Perfect timing.” Daisy said as she put the SUV into park and hopped out.

May rolled her eyes playfully as they made their way up the front porch steps. “Let’s hope he had them put everything in the right place.”

Daisy and Phil both finished all of their enchilada meals, but Melinda only ate half of hers, getting a look of concern from Daisy as they cleaned up. “You didn’t eat much.”

“I’m still feeling a little weird.”

Raising her eyebrows, Daisy said, “Are you _sure_ you’re not pregnant?”

May scoffed “If anything, it would be menopause.”

“Come on, May. You’re not old enough for that.”

“I’m older than you think.”

Daisy shrugged. “Alright. If you say so.”

“Believe me. I say so.” Melinda said firmly. After a moment, she continued more gently. “Speaking of, have you given any thought to when you’re going to tell Phil why you’re really here? He’s concerned about you.”

Just then, Phil came in carrying a stack of movies. “Ok, what’re we thinking for tonight’s pop-culture-catch-up? Options include: Frozen, National Treasure, Avatar, Mean Girls, and Harry Potter.”

Daisy locked eyes with May and seemed to make a decision. “Actually, can we pass on the movie tonight? I want to talk to you guys.”

Coulson looked surprised but made his way to the kitchen table along with May and Daisy. “Sure,” he added uncertainly.

Daisy sat at the head of the table, Phil on one side and Melinda on the other. She could feel both of hem watching her and took a deep breath to steel herself.

“Ok, before I begin, please don’t interrupt me because if I stop, I don’t know if I’ll be able to start again.” They both nodded so she continued. “I have been makings some risky decisions lately. And part of that means I got pregnant. And I don’t know what I want to do about it.” She kept her eyes downcast to avoid seeing their reactions. She hadn’t even told May that she was considering _all_ of her options. “I keep going back and forth. One minute I want to leave Shield and be a mother, the next I want to give the baby to someone who can do better than I can, and then I sometimes wish I hadn’t gotten pregnant at all.” Daisy sighed heavily. “And then I feel guilty because so many people don’t have this opportunity, but I don’t know what to do with a baby. All of that to say, I need you guys.” With the last sentence her voice broke.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I went back and forth several times writing this chapter and wasn't sure what I wanted my outcome to be. So I hope you guys still stick with me!

May sighed contentedly as she curled into Phil’s side. She loved Daisy, but she had missed Phil the past few nights.

He kissed her gently and she burrowed closer, ending up with her head on his chest and draping an arm across his middle.

After a few moments, “Melinda?” Phil asked.

“Hmm?”

“How long have you known about Daisy?”

Melinda turned to look up at him. “Since we picked her up.”

“Really? That long?” he sounded hurt.

“I found out by accident, and I didn’t want to push her away by telling you before she was ready.”

He nodded. “Fair point.”

She started tracing patterns across his chest with her fingertips. “I’m driving her to an appointment in a few days.”

Phil nodded again, “I’m glad she has you. It might be a little weird if I were the one going with her to appointments.”

Melinda snorted a little at the thought. “I love you, you big dork.”

“I love you too, Mel.”

\--------

Later that night, Phil heard footsteps in the hall. He glanced over at Melinda’s side of the bed and saw that she was still asleep next to him. The footsteps seemed to stop in front of their door and Phil expected Daisy to knock at any second. After a moment though, he heard the steps start up again continuing down the hall toward the staircase.

He eased out of bed and headed after Daisy. He found her in the kitchen, rummaging in the fridge. “Everything, ok?”

She whirled around, arms full of snacks. “Oh, God! You scared me!”

“Sorry. I heard you in the hallway and wanted to make sure everything was ok?”

Daisy unloaded her arms of the containers of leftovers. “I just wanted some company, but then I decided not to wake you guys. Obviously, I wasn’t quiet enough. Do you think May would mind if I eat her leftover enchiladas from the other day? I’m finally in the mood to eat again.”

He chuckled. “Go for it,” Phil said as Daisy hopped up on the kitchen island. He grabbed a pint of icecream from the freezer and leaned against the counter. “You want to talk about it?”

Daisy took a bite of the cold rice from the takeout container and took her time before answering. “I think I want to leave Shield.”

Coulson nodded slowly. “They’d be losing a great agent.”

She shrugged. “I may go back eventually. But I think I want to take an indefinite leave of absence.”

Coulson tipped his pint of ice cream her way, and she took a spoonful. “Mack is going to ask for a reason.”

Daisy dove her spoon back into Coulson’s ice cream. “I guess I’ll have to tell him the truth. I’ve decided to be a mom.”

\----

“You look nervous,” May said as she watched Daisy attempting to fill out the paperwork at the doctor’s office.

Daisy gave her a look that confirmed her suspicion. “That’s an understatement.”

Melinda was frustrated filling out her own paperwork- the office had had a cancellation, and she and Daisy managed to get appointments close to the same time. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a doctor outside of Shield. They need so much information,” she sighed.

“Well what do I say in the family history section?” Daisy scoffed. “My mom tried to suck the life out of me and my dad had his memory erased because he was a rage monster?”

“Tell them you were adopted. That’s mostly true anyway.”

Daisy gave her a grateful smile. “You’re going to come back with me, right?”

May nodded, and they took their paperwork back to the desk before waiting another thirty minutes or so before Daisy’s name was called.

“Miss Johnson?”

They followed the nurse, and May gave Daisy an encouraging smile as the nurse took Daisy’s vitals and did a blood draw. Once they were in the exam room, Daisy got situated on the exam table, and Melinda could tell how nervous she was.

“You doing ok?”

Daisy gave a non-committal half shrug.

There was a knock at the door, and the doctor came in followed by a nurse. “Miss Johnson, I’m Dr. Rose. I see here, you’re here because you’re pregnant?” At Daisy’s nervous nod, she continued. “Well, let’s get started with the physical part of the exam and then we will do your ultrasound, ok?” She smiled at Daisy.

Daisy gave a nervous smile in return.

A few minutes later, the physical part of the exam was finished, and the doctor had rolled over the ultrasound machine.

Daisy reached out for May’s hand and held tight as the doctor moved the probe back and forth, adjusting the field of view.

“Ah! There we go.” The doctor proclaimed. She turned the monitor for Daisy and May to see. “Here’s the heartbeat. Nice and strong. Measuring about 13 weeks.”

“So everything is ok?” Daisy asked, still holding tightly to May’s hand.

“Perfect.” The doctor smiled at both of them.

Daisy breathed a sigh of relief.

\----

Before they knew it, Daisy’s appointment was finished, and they were back in the waiting room before May’s appointment.

“I can’t believe I’m having a baby,” Daisy said dreamily as she stared at her sonogram photo.

May grinned, glad that Daisy was happy. It was like a switch had been flipped once she had seen the ultrasound. She was still nervous, but happiness seemed to have take over.

“I was still not a hundred percent sure what I wanted, but now… It’s different now that I’ve seen him or her.” She smiled at May.

“Mrs. Coulson?” called the nurse.

May got the same treatment as Daisy- vitals and blood work before being led to an exam room to wait on the doctor. When the doctor came in, she did a double take, recognizing Melinda from just a few minutes earlier.

“Well hello again.”

May nodded, and gave her a small smile in return. She wasn’t looking much forward to her exam, and was ready to get it over with.

The doctor sat and looked at Melinda’s lab results. “Oh. Did you know you’re pregnant, Mrs. Coulson?”

Melinda wasn’t sure she had heard correctly. “Pregnant? Oh, no, I’m pretty sure I’m going through menopause. That’s why I’m here.”

The doctor smiled again. “Ok. We can discuss that, and then rule out a false positive test.”

May described some of her recent symptoms, the dizziness, a few hot flashes, etc., but she got the feeling the doctor was placating her.

“Well Mrs. Coulson, all of those can be symptoms of both menopause or pregnancy, but I’d be glad to rule out one or the other by way of an ultrasound. Though, we don’t often see a false positive in the blood work.”

“Let’s do the ultrasound.” May was adamant – there was no way she was pregnant. After all her body had been through in almost 35 years with Shield; gunshot wounds, stab wounds, blunt force trauma; and plus her age, she didn’t see how she could be.

The doctor rolled over the machine and Melinda watched her like a hawk, waiting for her vindication.

“Well, looks like the blood work was right.” The doctor swiveled the screen for May to see.

“What?!” May tilted her head to get a better view.

“Measuring about eight and a half to nine weeks.” The doctor gave May a reassuring smile.

“No. I…” she swallowed hard, her heart suddenly racing. Once Daisy had mentioned the possibility to her, Melinda pushed the thought from her mind. She didn’t think this was possible.

“Melinda, is this baby something you want?” Dr. Rose asked.

May blinked a few times, trying to process. “I... yes.” She realized she did want this and had for a long time.

Dr. Rose nodded. “This is obviously not something you expected, but you are definitely pregnant. Now, I won’t sugarcoat the fact that you and the baby are at a higher risk of complications due to your age, so I’d like to see you again in four to six weeks, and I also want to schedule some other tests to make sure everything looks good with the baby’s genetics.” She gestured to the screen still showing the image of the baby, “Everything looks good so far, but I do want to err on the side of caution.”

Crossing her arms, Melinda took a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. “I can’t believe I’m pregnant.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it weird for May and Daisy to be pregnant at the same time? Probably. But I have a feeling Coulson's reaction to suddenly living with two pregnant women would be hilarious. Keep an eye out for that in the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil and Daisy find out that May is pregnant!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, I've never been pregnant so I don't know first hand what those hormones may do to your moods. However, I do have a very close friend who was very back and forth between being excited one moment and worried and stressed the next moment for the first few months of her pregnancy. So that's kind of what I've based May's reactions on here. If May seems a little hot and cold about being pregnant, cut her some slack. She's in her 50s and full of pregnancy hormones, who wouldn't be a weird mix of happy and anxious?

To Melinda, the ride home had seemed to take forever, but Daisy did not seem to notice May’s state of shock.

She kept wondering about all the unknowns, they cycled through her brain on an endless loop. _Would Phil be happy? But what were they going to do with two newborns in the house? Did they really want to turn both spare bedrooms into nurseries? Was Daisy going to want to stay? She had not really mentioned the baby’s father… Would she find him later and leave to raise the baby with him? And if Daisy stayed, how were they going to explain their situation to people? Not that it was any of their business anyway, but still..._

As they pulled into the driveway, Daisy asked, “May? Did you hear me?”

“What? Oh, yeah. We can go shopping this weekend if you want.”

“Thanks. I really want to get that What to Expect book the doctor was talking about…” Daisy kept talking, but May was barely listening. She needed to find Phil – he always grounded her when she was spiraling.

Thankfully, he came around the corner just as they made their way through the front door. “Hey. Everything go ok?”

Daisy proudly thrust the sonogram photo into his hands. “See here’s the head, and the foot. Oh, and that’s an arm.” She beamed at him as she finished showing him the images.

May smiled at the pair. Phil had put an arm around Daisy and was hugging her tightly. It eased her anxiety about his reaction to see him so happy with Daisy. He caught her eye and gave her a questioning look, trying to figure out her expression. He pulled back from Daisy gently and turned his attention back to her. “So, are you officially moving in here? We’ve got two more bedrooms you can pick from for a nursery.”

“If that’s ok?” she said uncertainly. Even though they had offered, Daisy still seemed unsure if they wanted her.

Walking up behind her, May put a hand on Daisy’s arm and squeezed gently. “You’re welcome as long as you want.”

“I don’t know what I would do without you guys.” She hugged Melinda tightly. “And thank you for taking me today.” Daisy grabbed her phone from her pocket. “Now, if you guys will excuse me for a few minutes, I need to call Mack and see what day I can come back to meet with him. I need to explain why I’m leaving.”

After Daisy left to go upstairs, Melinda pulled Phil to her and held him tightly.

“What’s wrong, Mel?” he whispered in her ear.

She shook her head gently against his chest. “Nothing. Just hold me for a minute?”

He pulled her closer, and after a few seconds asked, “You sure, you’re ok?”

Melinda looked up at him and nodded. “Just a little shocked, I think.” She pulled her own sonogram photos out of her back pocket and handed them to him.

Phil’s brows knit together in confusion. “Is this not Daisy’s?”

She shook her head and pointed to a line in the corner that read: _Coulson, Melinda._

The comprehension washed over his features, and he had that dopey grin on his face that she adored. “Melinda. Are you…? Are you pregnant?” At her nod, he scooped her up in his arms and spun her around.

May was grinning like an idiot despite herself, and after he stopped spinning her, she hugged him again. “I wasn’t sure how you’d react, but this was not on my list of possibilities.”

He kissed her happily. “We’re going to have a baby, Mel.”

“I know,” she beamed back at him. “You’re really happy, Phil? This isn’t something we ever discussed.”

“I’m over the moon.” He knelt in front of her and put his forehead on her abdomen so he could speak to her lower belly. “We’re going to have the best time being your parents. And I’ll teach you about Captain America the Avengers. Your mom is going to teach you how to be a total badass, and you’re going to have the best big sister.”

“Guys, can I either borrow your car or can one of you….” Daisy trailed off as she came down the stairs and took in the sight before her. “What’s going on?” she asked with a smirk.

May grinned innocently as she grabbed the sonogram images from where Phil had left them on the table and handed them to Daisy.

Daisy looked puzzled for only a moment before she threw her arms around Melinda as she realized what it meant. “Oh my God! I knew it!”

\----------

At dinner that night, Daisy suddenly asked. “Wait. This whole situation is weird, right?”

“What’s weird?” Phil asked.

May gave him a sideways glance, curious if he was seriously asking. “Of course, it is, Dais. But is it weirder than being held hostage in a virtual alternate universe by a blood thirsty robot?” she deadpanned.

Daisy nearly choked on her spaghetti.

“Melinda, please.” Phil chastised. “We are focusing on positives now. Not revisiting every miserable thing Shield put us through.”

“No weirder than an ancient Inhuman coming back to earth through a rock portal inhabiting the body of one of our former teammates,” Daisy added under her breath.

Phil sighed and glared at Daisy. “Not you, too.”

“Or that time I died, and Simmons had to bring me back.”

“Or that time _I_ died, and Simmons had to bring _me_ back.” May and Daisy were both smirking now.

Phil had had enough of their antics. “Ok, I think we can all agree we’ve literally been through hell. Happier subjects please!”

\----------

After dinner, Daisy had gone upstairs to start researching strollers, cribs, and everything else they would eventually need, which left Phil and Melinda curled together on the couch watching an old episode of House Hunters.

During a commercial break, May muted the tv. “I’m sorry if we upset you at dinner, Phil.”

“I wasn’t upset about the comments, I just…” he sighed. “Honestly, Melinda? I’m scared.”

Shocked after his earlier excitement, she turned around to face him. “Scared? Of being a father?”

“Yes! I mean no! Well. A little. I know you mentioned earlier the high risk for you and the baby, and those reminders of how close to death we’ve been on so many occasions and _all of our_ actual deaths?” He shook his head. “It’s a little too close for comfort.”

“I’m so glad to hear you say that,” she said with a small smile.

Phil did a double take. “I’m sorry. What’d you just say?”

“I’m terrified, too. Of wanting this too much, and then having something go wrong. Of trying _not_ to get my hopes up and end up pushing everything and everyone away.” Phil was watching her closely. “But, the tragic comedy of our lives within Shield make this…” she paused and put a hand tentatively on her belly. “It makes being pregnant seem like something that isn’t as risky or as worrisome as all that we’ve been through.”

He kissed her forehead comfortingly. “You’re saying this dark humor between you and Daisy is a coping mechanism?”

“Huh.” She considered for a moment, “I guess I am.”

\----------

Daisy had just opened her laptop to do some more research on top rated strollers and car seats (who knew there were so many differing opinions and reviews) when there was a knock at the door. “Come in,” she called

May stuck her head through the door. “You’re up early.”

“Yeah,” Daisy sighed. “Do you know how much stuff a baby needs?”

She scoffed as she sat down on the edge of Daisy’s bed. “Believe me, I think we will find out very soon.”

After a minute or so, Melinda still had not spoken. “What’s up, May? Not that I mind, but you don’t usually visit me before breakfast.”

“I just wanted to check on you,” she said softly.

Daisy could tell May was withholding her true purpose, but it was a start. “I’m…” Daisy paused, looking for the right words. “I’m feeling a lot of things right now,” she said honestly.

“I understand that completely.”

“What about you?”

Melinda shrugged half-heartedly before kicking back and propping next to Daisy.

She waited for May to continue. The real reason she was there still had not come to light yet.

When the words finally came, they were in a hoarse whisper, and May had tears in her eyes. “I don’t know what I’m doing, Daisy.”

“Hey, neither do I, but we can all figure this out. There are parenting classes we can take, and books to read, and all kinds of resources.”

May wiped at her eyes, no doubt to try to keep the tears from falling. “I am finally figuring out who I am without Shield being in the way and finally liking myself again.” She took a shaky breath before continuing. “What if I’m not enough? What if I can’t do this?”

Daisy’s mouth was agape. This was not anything close to what she had expected to come from May. Was this the hormones talking? In the last few days, she and May seemed to have switched personalities. May was now the uncertain, stress ridden bundle of anxiety that Daisy had been, and Daisy was the one feeling mostly happy and carefree.

May turned to look at her. “I shouldn’t bother you with this, but Phil was still asleep, and I could hear you up and moving in here. I’m sorry.” She moved toward the edge of the bed, but Daisy grabbed her arm.

“Wait. May.” Daisy shook her head trying to see how May had gotten to this point. “Sit with me for a while?” May finally nodded and settled back against the pillows once more. “May, look. The only reason I think I can be a mom is because of you.”

Melinda scoffed and wiped her eyes once more.

“No, I’m serious. You know what me and Simmons used to call you? The BUS mom. You did everything in your power to protect us. You went above and beyond to make sure we were safe all those years. And you have been so supportive since I called you. Not everybody would’ve dropped everything to come pick up a former coworker because they were crying on the phone. I know you have my back, and I hope you know I have yours. And at the end of the day, that’s what family is- knowing you’re loved and have people you can trust.”

“When did you get so wise?” Melinda said thickly.

Daisy gave her a quick smile. “It’s a relatively new trait.” She gently pulled May into her and wrapped her in a strong hug. “I understand if you don’t say it back, but I want you to know I love you and appreciate you so, so much May.”

May seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and squeezed Daisy even tighter. “I love you, too, Daisy.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys liked this chapter. Definitely not one of my faves, but I have some more interesting chapters down the line for you guys! I wouldn't do this fic justice if I didn't focus for a bit on things from Coulson's perspective, so that'll be coming your way in a little bit!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Coulson throws May a surprise birthday party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Normally, I'm not the best at writing things from Coulson's POV, but this was actually really easy for once! I hope you guys enjoy!

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Phil hurriedly shut off his alarm and turned to make sure Melinda had not been woken by the noise. She stirred slightly, but thankfully continued sleeping. Sometimes he still could not believe they had retired; they were free from the stress of Shield and were leaving the saving of the world to the younger generation.

Melinda had kicked her blankets off during the night, and without them Phil could see the slight swell of her lower belly. He smiled, resisting the urge to put a hand over their growing baby so Melinda could sleep. He was nervous, sure, but overall, the four short weeks since May had told him she was pregnant had been some of the happiest of his life.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

He scrambled to turn off the alarm, hoping he had again caught it in time to keep from waking her, but no luck this time.

“What time is?” she asked groggily. “It’s barely light out.”

He leaned over to kiss her forehead. “It’s early. Go back to sleep for a while,” he whispered in her ear.

She yawned widely. “Why are you up?”

“I was going to cook breakfast for you guys before you leave to go shopping.”

“No,” Melinda said stubbornly as she curled into his side.

“No? Do you not want breakfast?” he asked with a grin.

May yawned again. “I’ll eat cereal if it means you’ll stay.”

Phil rolled to face her. “You hate cereal, Melinda.”

“But I love you more than I hate it.”

He always thought there was no way he could love her more, but then she would do something like this and make him fall for her all over again. It was the little things he appreciated most about their relationship. “I’ll stay for a while, but you get to explain to Daisy if I don’t have enough time to cook the breakfast I promised her.”

Melinda hummed contentedly against his chest.

After a few minutes she had finally fallen back asleep, and Phil gently pulled away from her to go cook breakfast. He looked at his watch - almost 8. He had to have them fed and out of the house by 10. The team was going to arrive at 10:30, and he did not want them to ruin the surprise for Melinda.

An hour later he had bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, fried eggs, hash browns, waffles, and toast fixed for them. Daisy was first down the stairs with her impeccable timing, showing her face as soon as the last batch of fresh bacon came out of the skillet.

“Smells good!” she said as she grabbed a piece before it had even cooled.

Phil was glad to see she was already dressed and ready to go. “You could at least get one of the cooler pieces instead of burning your tongue on the hot ones.”

Daisy was holding her bite of bacon between her teeth trying to blow on it to cool it down. After it was finally cool enough for her to eat, she said, “Sorry. Baby said to eat the bacon, so I just grabbed the piece closest to me.”

Phil chuckled. “Don’t blame my grandchild. I’ve seen you do this same thing on more than one occasion over the years.”

She smiled guilty at him. “Pics or it didn’t happen, Coulson.” After another bite of bacon, she asked, “Is May up? We have to be ready and gone in an hour because you know Simmons will have everybody here early or at least on time.”

“I heard her walking around up there earlier, but she’s probably up and having the same trouble she had yesterday,” he said tactfully- Melinda was having trouble finding clothes in her closet that still fit comfortably. She could still wear her jeans, but she had been complaining about them being too tight for couple of weeks now.

“That’s literally why we are going shopping - we both need clothes that will actually fit. Look, I’m in leggings and a t-shirt because that’s all I’ve got that works right now other than pajama pants. Can she not just wear…” Daisy trailed off seeing Melinda coming down the staircase dressed in leggings and a t-shirt.

Melinda glared at them both, seeming to have guessed they were just talking about her wardrobe issues.

Phil smiled adoringly at her. She was gorgeous with her Blondie t-shirt and her hair pulled back in a ponytail. “Breakfast is ready,” he said as he handed Daisy a plate to start filling with her choice of breakfast foods.

While Daisy was distracted, Coulson wrapped Melinda in his arms, and she automatically leaned into his embrace, the last of her frosty demeanor dissipating. “My clothes don’t fit anymore… But you know what that means, right?” She looked up and saw the confusion etched on his face. “It means we’re another step closer to having a baby.”

“One step closer.” He echoed happily.

\----------

Somehow, he was waving goodbye from the porch right on time as the ladies left for their outing. He just finished cleaning the kitchen from their breakfast when the Shield SUV pulled up in front of the house.

“I’m impressed you got them to leave on time, sir!” Simmons exclaimed as she climbed the few steps up the porch to meet him.

“Jemma, I’m no longer ‘sir.’ But yeah, so am I. Daisy had to practically drag Melinda out the door.” He grinned broadly at the four of them in turn. “Everybody ready?”

“Put us to work- this is your shindig after all.” Mack said clapping him on the shoulder.

“You guys bring the decorations?”

Yo-yo answered first. “Are you sure you ordered enough?” she said with a note of sarcasm. “Package after package delivered for a week straight. May does not strike me as a fan of decorations. Or parties for that matter.”

Phil just grinned back at her. “It’s a surprise birthday party. You can never have too many decorations, Yo-Yo.”

And so, they got to work. By late afternoon, they had somehow turned the backyard into a completely new space. String lights and long sheets fabric had been draped from a set of wires they had run from the house to create a canopy that would be illuminated once darkness fell. To be honest he was quite impressed with the final product of their efforts.

Simmons came up as they finished putting the cloths on the tables. “Sir, this looks fantastic! It’s so elegant. Although it’s a little more like a wedding reception, I’d say.”

He gave her a puzzled look, wondering if Daisy might have spilled the beans. He called everyone over to try to avoid having to respond to Simmons. “Ok, crew. Thanks so much for your help today. We have just enough time for us all to shower and get ready for the party before our other guests and the caterers arrive.”

\-----------

An hour and a half later, they were all showered and wearing their party clothes, which for Phil meant a pair of jeans and a white button up – without the top two buttons done and the sleeves rolled halfway. He wanted this to be more casual than formal after all. Hopefully, Daisy had convinced Melinda to buy something to wear tonight without tipping her off about the party.

“Coulson, the caterer needs a final head count so they know how many hors d’oeuvres to finish,” Fitz called from the kitchen.

“It’s only 15 plus however many RSVP-ed from Shield,” he yelled back as he glanced out the front window. He saw Simmons directing guests to the backyard, and hoped Daisy was driving. She could stall if need be.

Mack, looking dapper in his navy button up, walked into the foyer where Phil was still peering anxiously out the window, watching for the headlights to turn down the driveway. “Everything is ready to go Coulson. Simmons said the last of the guests just arrived.”

“Good.”

“You ok? You seem a little nervous.”

Phil scoffed. “Oh, I don’t know, Mack. I’m throwing a party for someone who notoriously hates parties.” He turned to face his friend. “Maybe this was a bad idea.”

Mack chuckled. “Well that’s on you, but we spent all day setting this up, so there _will_ be a party tonight.”

Coulson opened his mouth to respond, but his cell phone rang before he could. “Daisy?”

“Hey, we were just checking to see if dinner was ready yet? May was trying to get me to stop for takeout, but I told her you probably already had dinner.”

God bless her, she was doing a great job of keeping this party a secret. “Yeah, I do have dinner almost done. It should be ready in less than five minutes.”

“Good! We are about ten minutes away. See you soon!”

He paced nervously in the foyer, and once he saw the headlights come down the driveway, he went to meet them in the driveway.

Melinda climbed out of the passenger’s seat, looking suspiciously at the extra cars in front of the house. “Phil, what is this?”

She was wearing a new deep purple dress that swished when she walked, and he could not help but stare. “You look gorgeous, Mel.” He glanced at Daisy’s new outfit – a tighter, sleeveless, black, and white striped version of May’s dress. “You, too Dais.” He gave them both a nervous smile.

May was not to be charmed though. “You didn’t answer my question.”

Daisy knew when to take her leave. “Yeah, I’m just going to head to the back yard and let you guys chat for a minute.” She patted Phil’s arm encouragingly as she walked by.

“Don’t be mad.”

She crossed her arms and arched her eyebrows. “That’s an unusual way to start a conversation.”

He smiled guiltily. “It’s a birthday party for you. And – if you want – we can use it as our wedding reception too? I know we talked about having a party to announce it after we got settled in the house, and now we’re settled, and I didn’t want to bother you with trying to plan something.”

May softened as she heard his reasons. “I knew something was up when Daisy suggested we buy dresses and wear them home, and I quote, ‘to show you one of our purchases’.”

“And here I was thinking she would keep you from being suspicious,” Phil said with a smirk, as he put an arm around her and started leading her to the backyard.

“Don’t tell her, but this dress is actually really comfortable. Otherwise, I probably would’ve fought her on it.”

He chuckled. “Well before we get there, what’s the scoop? Wedding announcement or just birthday party?”

“A party can have more than one purpose, I guess. But we are not announcing that I’m pregnant. We can wait…” she stopped suddenly and listened as the music started. “Is there going to be dancing at this party?”

He panicked. “I thought you liked dancing – a little bit.”

Melinda smiled, and took his hand. “I’m messing with you, Phil.”

\----------

They party may have been relatively small, but they had a great time. Friends from their old days at Shield had come to celebrate May’s birthday, and to everyone’s surprise, a quick appearance from Maria Hill. Despite seeing so many old friends, Phil’s favorite part of the night was the end, after all the party guests had left. It was getting late, but he had finally pulled Melinda out on the dancefloor for a slow dance, her head on his chest as he swayed her gently through the grass.

“I had a good time tonight, Phil,” she said softly.

He kissed the top of her head gently. “I’m so glad.”

“Are all the kids staying the night?”

He chuckled softly. “I think so. Mack and Yo-yo are going to take the spare room, Fitz is going to sleep on the couch, and Simmons is bunking with Daisy.”

“We really should’ve gotten a bigger house,” May said.

As they turned, Phil caught a glimpse of Daisy watching them, but she turned away quickly once she realized she had been spotted. He had to wonder how she felt, watching the rest of them be coupled up all evening. Come to think of it, he did not even know if she had been on the dance floor all night. “Mel, do you think Daisy would want to dance with me? Would that be awkward for her?”

May smiled up at him. “I bet she’d love that.”

As their song ended, they headed back to the table where their small crew of ‘kids’ was still sitting, and he offered his hand to Daisy. “Shall we?”

Daisy took his hand and let him lead her to the dance ‘floor.’ “It’s a good thing it’s another slow song. I’m too tired for any fancy footwork.”

Phil grinned at her. “Ya know? Me too.”

“Well, I’ve got to say, you guys did an amazing job with the decorations. I mean, you organized this all without May finding you out.”

“Don’t sell yourself short, Dais. You had the hardest part of the job, keeping her busy today.”

She yawned and nestled herself into his chest as they continued moving slowly around the yard. “We actually had a really good time.” After a few minutes, they were not really dancing anymore, just swaying gently in place with the music. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you and May happier than these last few weeks.”

“I know.” He took a beat before he chanced asking her a question that had been lingering. “What about you? Are you happy, Daisy?”

It took her several seconds to answer, “I am. I don’t miss always being bruised from various missions, but I do miss kicking ass.”

He chuckled softly. “I think that’s one sentiment we can all agree on.”

Daisy yawned again. “Can I tell you something?”

“Of course.”

“I think I’m starting to feel the baby moving. Nothing big, but just little flutters from time to time. It makes it different.” She moved one hand down to her small baby bump. Even though she was almost seventeen weeks pregnant, she hardly looked any bigger than May who was only twelve.

Phil did not know how to respond, so he just gave her a gentle squeeze.

After another moment, she added. “This is nice. You’re going to be a good dad.” She yawned again, “Actually, you already are a good dad.”

He gave her another squeeze, “Thank you, Daisy.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil and Melinda tell the team the good news! 
> 
> And Phil gets a job offer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a fairly short chapter, but work has been a bit crazy this week! Sorry!

Melinda woke with the sunrise, and immediately rolled over to Phil to avoid the bright beam of light that had awoken her.

“Morning,” he said softly as she fit herself against his side.

“Not yet,” she mumbled. They had all stayed up far too late, and she was still tired.

Phil hummed, sounding amused. “They’ll have to go back to base soon, and I thought you wanted to tell them at breakfast. For that to happen there actually has to _be_ breakfast.”

She draped an arm across him, “Ten more minutes?”

“Five, unless you’re going to be the one making omelettes for everybody.”

“Five it is.”

Just then there was a knock at the door. Melinda groaned as Phil cheerily called, “Come in!”

Daisy stuck her head through the door. “Can I sleep in here until breakfast? After all her hard work yesterday, I didn’t have the heart to wake Jemma to tell her to stop snoring, so I barely slept all night.”

Phil chuckled. “You two sleep a little longer. I need to start breakfast anyway.” He disentangled himself from a grumbling Melinda, and shut the curtains for them on his way, leaving them in them semi-darkness, as Daisy settled herself into the bed.

* * *

An hour or so later, another knock startled Melinda awake. “Yeah?” she called.

It was Yo-yo. “Coulson told me to tell you two that breakfast is almost ready,” she called through the door.

Daisy grumpily pulled the duvet over her head.

“Thanks,” May called toward the door.

A muffled, “ugh,” came from under the blankets before Daisy peeked out to give May a look that clearly said she was not ready to be awake.

Melinda smiled at her. “Come on, Dais. You can take a nap when they leave.”

“I know,” she said begrudgingly as she sat up, squinting through the sleep in her eyes.

“Can I ask you a question before we go downstairs?”

Daisy nodded as she stifled a yawn. “What’s up?”

“Why was none of the team surprised last night when we announced we had gotten married?”

Daisy arched her eyebrows. “Seriously? Ok, well we all totally figured that was a matter of time after you guys retired. Together. And said you were going on vacation. Also together. And then a month later were looking to buy a house. _Together._ Do you see why no one was surprised at that news? I mean I knew of course because when I recreated your identities, I already gave you his last name to make it easier. You guys are the ones who decided to keep it a secret until you were ready to surprise everyone.”

“You made your point,” May said with a smirk. “I bet the news I have for them today will be a little more shocking.”

“They were so excited when I told them I was pregnant. They are going to flip out when you tell them you are, too.”

* * *

After they had all eaten breakfast and were still sitting at the table chatting, Melinda felt Phil’s hand on her knee during a lull in the conversation. She nodded, knowing this was his way of asking if she was ready to tell them.

He cleared his throat, and once he had their undivided attention, he said, “Well before you guys go, there’s one more thing we’d like to discuss.”

May could see Daisy at the opposite end of the table with a smirk on her face, clearly excited to see everybody’s reactions to the news.

Mack speculated first, “What else could it be, Coulson? You guys already retired.”

Simmons threw in her two cents. “Are married.”

“To _no one’s_ surprise.” Fitz added.

Daisy still had her smirk and apparently couldn’t resist. “And bought a house.”

“And adopted Daisy.” Yo-yo added.

“So, unless May’s pregnant, then I don’t think…” Simmons trailed off after seeing the smiles spread across Phil and Melinda’s faces. “Wait, May are you pregnant?” she asked excitedly.

Melinda looked to Phil with a grin. “Well that’s got to be the easiest thing we’ve done in a while. Didn’t even have to say anything.”

Mack, Yo-yo, Fitz, and Simmons all started talking at once, meaning she only caught snippets of what everyone was saying, but everyone was thrilled based on what they heard.

Phil held up his hands in surrender. “Guys, guys. One at a time.”

The barrage of questions lasted far longer than May had expected. Was this planned? When was she due? Was she feeling all right? Did they know if it was a boy or girl? Had they started thinking of names yet? Could the team do anything to help? What did they need? Would there be baby shower? Could the team throw them a joint baby shower with Daisy? Did Daisy know already? What was it like for Phil with two pregnant women in the house?

“I just can’t believe it!” Simmons finally exclaimed. “We’ve had so much misery over the past few years, that I think this is a wonderful surprise!”

“Here, here!” Fitz exclaimed as he raised his glass of orange juice toward Phil and Melinda and then toward Daisy.

Soon the talk turned toward Shield and the projects they had working, and Mack eventually asked Coulson if they could have a chat about some directorial matters before the crew left. They went off to the study, leaving the rest of them to move to the living room, where May sat listening to the chatter as she had done countless times when they were on the Bus.

Eventually, the team had to get going, and they all moved toward the door reluctantly when Mack and Phil finally emerged from the study.

“Unfortunately, duty calls, guys,” Mack said as he shook Coulson’s hand.

“Yes, but we’ll be back for another visit when we can. But you guys are always welcome at base if you’d like!” Simmons added.

After all they had done for her, Melinda hugged every member of her former team before they left, surprising Mack and Fitz with her gesture. She even waved goodbye from the porch with Phil and Daisy as they pulled out of the driveway.

As they turned to go back inside, Daisy hooked one arm around Melinda and the other around Phil. “Well this was a fun weekend, guys.”

Melinda grinned at her. “Thank you both for the wonderful party. I appreciate it more than you know.”

* * *

Phil and Melinda passed the rest of the day discussing plans for the nursery and the possibility of adding onto the house, all while Daisy had abandoned them to go nap for the afternoon to catch up on her sleep.

“Oh, Phil?” Melinda asked suddenly while they were pouring over some bank statements trying to budget what they could spend on an extension.

“What’s up, Mel?”

“I meant to ask what Mack wanted earlier.”

He didn’t look away from his paperwork, but she could see a slight flush working its way up his neck. “He wanted to know if I would be interested in helping him with a project. Temporarily.”

She waited. Phil wasn’t one to let a silence linger, so he would keep talking if she was patient.

He finally looked up to meet her gaze. “It sounded exciting, but I told him no.”

Melinda crossed her arms, slightly irritated. “Without even talking to me?”

“Melinda, I told him no because of you.”

She arched her eyebrows.

He gave her an apologetic look. “I didn’t mean it like that and you know it.”

“I’m not trying to fight, Phil.” She sighed. “But I know you’re bored. There’s only so much gardening you can do and so many movies you can watch before the novelty starts to wear off.”

Phil studied her carefully. “Melinda. I won’t leave you and Daisy for weeks at a time right now.”

Melinda gave him an appraising look. “What’s the project, Phil?”

“You’re not going to let this go, are you?”

She grinned. “I think you’ve known me long enough to know the answer to that.”

“Fine.” He leaned back in his chair. “He wants to me help get a new Academy up and running.”

Melinda was taken aback. It was a bigger project than she anticipated. “Do you want to do it?”

Coulson was adamant. “I already said, I won’t leave you guys. This project would require recruitment trips, location scouting, overseeing design and construction. It’s very time consuming.”

She gently smoothed her shirt over her barely rounded belly. “Let’s say for a moment that I wasn’t pregnant.” Melinda held up a hand to stop Phil from interrupting her as opened his mouth to protest. “If I wasn’t pregnant, what would you want to do?”

May knew she was about to win the argument – a muscle in his jaw kept clenching and unclenching as he realized she had a point. “If I had no other obligations, I would probably be very interested in taking the job.”

“Then I think you should take it.”

He eyed her warily. “I don’t know. I’d rather be here for you.”

She made her way around the desk to him and took both his hands in her own. “I can’t tell you what to do, but if this is something you want, we can always work out a schedule with Mack and find you an assistant. I’m sure one of the Koenigs would be glad to help you.”

Phil pulled her down to his lap gently and wrapped his arms around her as she settled against his chest. “It’ll be a lot of work.” He kissed her temple. “Are you sure you really,” and her cheek. “want to share me,” then her lips. “with Shield again,” her breath caught as he kissed his way down her neck.

Melinda shuddered when he reached her collar bone. “I know what you’re doing. You can’t distract me forever.” Even as she said it, she was melting into him, shifting to put her arms around him.

“Not forever, no, but at least for now.” He kissed her again before pulling back to look her in the eyes. “Do you really think it’s a good idea?

“Phil, I’ve heard you talk about restarting the academy since Shield fell. If you want to do it, then we can work it out.”

Coulson grinned at her. “In that case, I’ll think about it.” As he threaded his fingers through her hair, he whispered, “Now where were we with the distraction?”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, friends! Lots of May and Daisy in this chapter because I love their mother daughter relationship if you haven't noticed. It could also be because I miss my mom since I can't visit her due to self quarantine. (She's got autoimmune issues and I don't want to risk accidentally taking anything to her.) 
> 
> Also, I realized that I never directly told y'all when this is all taking place, I guess I just figured you'd read my mind lol! But in my mind this is set after season 4(I reference that in this chapter). And there's obviously no deal with Ghost Rider for Coulson to worry about. I'm fine with the emotion of if it, but not in this story. I didn't want to deal with that heaviness while seeing it on screen during my rewatch in the time leading up to season 7, and I especially don't want to deal with it now that we are still dealing with the aftermath of that plotline on the current episodes.
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy!

When May had let it ‘slip’ that Phil could spearhead the new Academy, Daisy had been thrilled. “Oh, that’d be perfect for you!”

“I don’t know if the timing is right.”

“Okaaaaaaay…... why not?” Daisy asked.

“Come on, Daisy. You know why not.”

She gave him a look that clearly asked ‘ _what the hell?’_ She could not believe it. Coulson could do something amazing as the founder of the new Shield Academy, and he was thinking of turning down the offer.

“I think he should take it.” May added as she returned to the living room and handed Daisy her popsicle. Now that it was summer, this was their new afternoon routine – popsicles and ice cream, usually followed by a movie or a nap on the couch.

“See? We think you’d be great!” She looked down at the freezer pop. “Oh, man, do we not have any more blue ones?” she pouted.

May shook her head. “You ate them all.”

Daisy huffed as she took a bite of her popsicle. “Ugh. Pink will work, I guess. But anyway, can’t you just work out a schedule with Mack?”

Melinda could only get out a muffled, “Mmm!” past her mouthful of ice cream before she swallowed quickly. “I said that too. And he should ask if one of the Koenig’s could be his assistant.”

“See?” Daisy said with a grin. “May’s got it figured out.”

Coulson looked back and forth between the two of them. “You two really think I should do this?”

“You gave me something to believe in when I joined Shield, Coulson. Now you’ve got an opportunity to set up an academy that will inspire the next batch of agents. I don’t see how you could turn that down.” Daisy nestled herself against May’s side. “Besides, the two… wait, the four of us, will be fine. She’s Melinda _fucking_ May, and I’m _Quake._ You’ve literally got two of the most badass agents Shield has ever known living under one roof. I mean, don’t get me wrong, we’ll miss you while you’re gone, but we can manage.”

“Plus, if you get more of the work done now, you can take more time off once we’re a family of five.” Melinda added.

He smiled at them uncertainly. “You’re both sure you’re ok with this?”

“I mean, I’m sure we’ll be eating more takeout without you to cook for us, but we can make it work.” Daisy said with a smirk.

“We all know you’d be perfect for the job. Just call Mack and see if you can work out the scheduling, Phil. If it doesn’t work, then at least you’ll know.”

He sighed. “Ok, I’ll call Mack and see what we can do. It’s been over a week since I turned him down. I better go call him before he finds someone else.”

Daisy smiled broadly at him. “Yeah, I bet the job is still yours. He knows how convincing we can be.”

Phil stood and kissed them each on the cheek. “More like he knows how pushy you two can be,” he added teasingly as he headed toward his office.

As soon as they heard the door click shut, Daisy giggled. “That was surprisingly easy.”

May smiled down at her. “He wants it. He just worries about us.”

“I know.” Daisy leaned over to throw her empty popsicle tube on the coffee table, and instead of sitting up, just laid her head in May’s lap. “You know Mack will let him work whatever scheduled he wants, right?”

Melinda chuckled. “Probably.”

Daisy hummed contentedly as May started softly scratching her back.

“Are you sleeping ok, Daisy? You look tired lately.”

Truthfully, she was not. She was normally one to sleep on her stomach, which was now impossible. And it was hard to get to sleep at night when it felt like her baby kept turning somersaults in her stomach. “Probably not much different than you, May.”

Unimpressed with her vague answer, Melinda asked, “Seriously, are you sleeping enough?”

“Yes, _mom_.” Daisy realized she had never really called May ‘mom’ before. Sure, she had told her she was like a mother to her and had told her about the BUS mom nickname, but she had never referred to her directly as ‘mom.’ She hoped May would not be upset by it. Before she had time to find out, though, Daisy was distracted. “Oh, give me your hand, May! Maybe you’ll be able to feel it this time.” She quickly grabbed Melinda’s wrist and positioned her hand where there had just been a little kick.

Melinda was watching her expectantly and as Daisy felt another little kick, May’s face lit up with the biggest smile Daisy had ever seen from her.

Daisy was absolutely beaming back. She had never seen May look so happy in the years she had known her, and she was thrilled to have been the reason behind her smile.

* * *

The waiting room was icy cold, and Phil fought off a shiver. It was hard enough having to wait for the nurse to call Melinda’s name, but did they have to make the room so unbearably cold in the meantime?

Phil risked a glance at her. She was sitting almost perfectly still, one hand on belly, with only her thumb moving absentmindedly. He doubted if the other people in the room could see how nervous she was, but he knew better. Her stillness was not a calm one.

Melinda had seen him looking, and gave him a brief smile, letting him know she was ok.

He offered his hand, and she took it readily, threading her fingers through his. They knew the test had only a very small risk associated with it, and it was only being done as a precaution as the ultrasounds had looked fine.

Phil was lost in thought and did not realize her name had been called until Melinda was pulling him gently to his feet.

“If you’ll follow me, please.” The nurse said kindly as she led them through a hallway to the small procedure room. She had Melinda hop up on the exam table and allowed Phil to sit in a chair nearby. “Let’s get some vitals…” she stuck a thermometer in May’s mouth and kept chatting. “And how far along are you, Mrs. Coulson?”

Melinda shot him a disgruntled look over the nurse’s shoulder, and he could not suppress a grin, remembering a similar look she had given him when he escorted her to the med center at the academy after a sparring injury. “She’s 16 weeks,” Phil chimed.

The nurse kept working, strapping a blood pressure cuff to Melinda’s arm. “Oh, how exiting! And you must be one happy dad!”

“Thrilled would be an understatement,” he said truthfully as he smiled broadly at Melinda.

The machine beeped, signaling the readings had been taken. “Oh, perfect numbers!” The nurse exclaimed as she took the cuff off Melinda’s arm and the thermometer from her mouth. “Ok, I’ll let the doctor know you’re good to go!”

As soon as the door shut, Melinda rolled her eyes. “She was irritatingly perky.”

He stood and walked the short distance to her, and she leaned into him. “She works with pregnant women all day, of course she’s in a good mood. Don’t be so salty.”

She laughed against his chest. “Did Daisy teach you that phrase?”

“I may have picked up some new lingo from her.”

“Are you sure you used it correctly?” she asked skeptically.

“I think it’s pretty close.”

Melinda hummed, amused.

Rubbing her back gently, he whispered, “Everything is going to be fine, Melinda.”

She sighed. “You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do. When this is done, you’ll get a couple of days R&R, and then life will be back to normal.”

“Normal?” she scoffed. “Phil, my life hasn’t been normal since you took me back out into the field almost five years ago.”

* * *

Though they would have to wait a couple of weeks for the results, the procedure had been quick and relatively painless. Melinda now was not even sure why she had been so nervous- sure a big needle got stuck through her stomach, but she left with only a band aid to show for it.

The doctor had said she could return to her normal day-to-day activities, so long as she avoided anything strenuous. Though Phil had taken this to mean she was to be off her feet for 48 hours. She loved him dearly, but if he questioned why she was not lying down one more time…

To avoid conflict, she waited until Phil was in his office on a conference call to the Koenigs – after a tiff between the brothers, he got Mack to approve both Sam and Billy to be his assistants while setting up the new Academy.

She made her way quietly through the kitchen and out on the back porch. A warm summer breeze was blowing, and Melinda could not think of a better place to do her Tai Chi.

With all that had been going on, Melinda had not been as diligent with keeping up with her practice lately, and she had missed taking the time for herself to do so. She was halfway through her modified routine when she heard, “Ooooh, somebody’s going to be in troubleeeeee.”

May shot Daisy a warning look. “I couldn’t sit still anymore.” She continued her routine as Daisy went to sit on the porch railing, watching her. “You know, you could join me.”

Daisy shook her head. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’m just here to supervise on Coulson’s behalf to make sure you don’t over-exert yourself, but also to warn you if Coulson starts looking for you. Me being here is a balancing act in itself.”

“Suit yourself,” May said as she moved into her next position.

Daisy soon moved to one of the oversized chairs they had on the porch and propped her feet up, where she sat for another ten minutes or so before Melinda finished her routine and came to sit in the chair opposite to her.

“Did Phil have a chance to talk to you about next week, Dais?” May asked as she propped her feet on the small table between them.

“No. What’s going on next week?”

“Phil’s got to go on a recruiting trip to Australia. And Mack agreed to let us keep the quinjet a few extra days. So we can have a mini vacation.”

Daisy nodded. “That’ll be good for you guys to get away. You guys deserve a little alone time after I crashed your retirement.”

Melinda chuckled. “Well we were going to invite you to come with us, but if you don’t want to go to the beach…”

“I appreciate the offer, but I think we will stay here.” She rubbed a hand across her belly. “I think I’ll see if maybe Simmons or Yo-yo might want to take a trip to Target or maybe go see a movie or something.”

This wasn’t the reaction she had been expecting. “Are you sure? They’re going to get started on the expansion of the house in a couple of weeks, and you’ll be wishing you had taken the opportunity for some peace and quiet while you had the chance.”

“No, I’m really fine, May. Maybe another time.” Daisy suddenly looked concerned. “Wait, you’ll be back to take me to my appointment next Friday, right?”

“Have I ever let you down, Daisy?”

Daisy instantly looked relieved. “Good. They’ll probably be able to tell if it’s a boy or girl, and I want you to be there.”

Melinda turned to Daisy. “Are you excited to find out?”

She did not answer right away, instead putting her hands on her baby bump and smoothing her t-shirt. “Is it bad that I have a preference?”

“If it is, then I’m guilty, too.”

“Really?”

“I don’t think it’s bad to have a preference because ultimately, it won’t matter. I think you’ll forget all about your preferences when you hold that baby in your arms.”

Daisy nodded. “Yeah. It’s going to sounds stupid and I know it’s totally irrational, but I’m just worried that if it’s a boy, he’ll look like his dad.”

May was silent, scanning Daisy’s face, searching for answers. This was the first Daisy had mentioned the baby’s father since she had arrived, and Melinda did not like the phrasing Daisy had just used.

Daisy waved a hand and shook her head dismissively. “I know what you’re probably thinking, and it was totally consensual. I just wasn’t in the best headspace or making the best decisions then. After the Lincoln and then Ghost Rider and the Watchdogs and the Framework, I was in a pretty dark place, and the way I dealt with it wasn’t drugs or alcohol. I was just desperate to be happy, even if it was just for a few minutes.”

How could she have missed it? Daisy had been hurting for a long time, and she and Phil had left her. Had Daisy not proved how much pain she was in when she locked herself in the cafeteria with the prisoners, ready to sacrifice herself?

“I don’t even know his name, May," Daisy continued. "I only know who he is because it’s literally the only time I didn’t use any, uh… protection.”

Melinda shook her head sympathetically. “It doesn’t matter, Daisy.”

“I’m ok with it. Mostly. And like I said, I know that’s an irrational thought process to make me not want a boy because genetics don’t work that way.” Daisy gave her a wry smile. “I’m just not sure how to handle it if I look at my baby and I’m reminded of all past mistakes.”

May stood from her chair and Daisy moved to oneside so she could share her seat. She put an arm around her daughter’s shoulders, and Daisy instantly nestled herself into her side – they had been doing this a lot lately, and it did not take Daisy any time at all to get comfortable. “Look. Neither of us expected to be pregnant, but here we are. We’ll try to focus on the positives and be there to support each other. Ok?”

Daisy nodded against her shoulder. “Ok.”

Melinda kissed the top of her head. “And plus, if you have a boy and I have a girl, then maybe we can just swap,” she deadpanned, earning an amused "hmm" from Daisy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you still reading this story, thank you so very much!
> 
> I have a wild idea for what's to come later, but it's just a matter of getting to that point. If there are anythings you'd like to see in the meantime, let me know and I'll see what I can do! (FYI, I will most definitely be having fun with Philinda on their trip next chapter! And I'm planning on having them all take a trip to Ikea for baby furniture, because I just went to Ikea for the first time a few months ago, and I am OBSESSED. Plus I think Philindaisy need an outing together, and I think that would be fun!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So just FYI, this chapter has almost no plot. I was just in the mood for some domesticity from Philindaisy. 
> 
> I'm being really self indulgent with this fic, so I hope some of you out there are still reading!

Daisy woke early, hoping to have time to make muffins for May and Coulson left for their trip to Australia. She was not great in the kitchen, but she could make muffins out of a packet. Honestly, they probably deserved more than muffins from a packet after just rolling with the punches and inviting her to move in without hesitation. She made a mental note to buy them both a gift of gratitude when she went out with Jemma.

Within 20 minutes, she had the muffins in the oven, but had somehow managed to crack a glass mixing bowl with the electric mixer and burned her finger on the oven rack in the process. Coulson had been working with her in the kitchen, but apparently still had a way to go.

She was cursing under her breath as she tried to reach Coulson’s favorite travel coffee mug off the top shelf of the cabinet when she heard him behind her. “Need a hand?”

Daisy quaked the shelf in an attempt to vibrate the cup closer to the edge, but instead it moved further away. “Damnit!” She huffed as she moved aside. “Please.”

He leaned past her and grabbed his mug. “Do I smell strawberry muffins?” he asked hopefully.

“Thanks. And yes, you do. I’m making you guys breakfast for the road,” she added proudly as she turned around to prep the coffee maker for him and put the kettle on the stove for May’s tea.

Phil eyed the broken bowl on the counter. “Everything… uh… going ok in here this morning?”

“Don’t worry, I dumped the original batter into the trash in case any glass got into the food. I used a plastic bowl to mix the ones in the oven.”

He seemed relieved. “Great. Do you need any help finishing up?”

Before she could answer she heard May, “Mmmm. I smell muffins.”

As May began making her tea, Coulson was by her side dumping cream and sugar into his own mug. Somehow, they always gravitated toward each other unconsciously, and Daisy was always impressed by the site. They started a couple of feet apart, but after every turn to the sink or refrigerator, they managed to get a few inches closer until they were almost touching. Daisy was not even sure how they managed this or if they even realized they were doing so, but knowing they somehow always had a magnetic pull toward each other made her so happy.

The two dorks had been in love with each other for years and had finally had the guts to act on it. _Finally._ They were worse than FitzSimmons taking their time to admit it. Although, maybe that had been her own downfall. Loving Lincoln too quickly. They had gotten close and that’s when he had… No. Not going there. What had May said the other day? Focus on the positives.

 _DING!_ The oven timer let them know the muffins were ready and she took them out slowly, taking care not to bump her hand on the oven rack this time.

She dumped the pan upside down, dropping muffins and crumbs all over the counter unceremoniously. “Voila! Breakfast is served. Bon Appetit. Etcetera, etcetera,” she said as she flipped the muffins right side up to cool.

“Thanks, Dais,” May said as she claimed two muffins for herself. “You sure you don’t want to come with us?”

Phil popped his head back in the kitchen from the foyer. “It’ll be fuuuun!” he sing-songed.

Daisy chuckled and hugged May as best she could. With them both being pregnant, it was getting hard to do so easily. “No thanks, guys. You two have a good time.”

* * *

Piper, Davis, and Yo-yo were headed on a mission with Strike, so Phil had arranged for he and Melinda to fly the first leg of their trip on the Zephyr before they peeled off in the quinjet.

They had just parked and were headed for the hangar when they heard, “Coulson! May!” from behind. Mack was jogging up to the couple, and offered Coulson a quick greeting and handshake before turning to May. “I’m on my way to a meeting, but I wanted to come say hello and see how you’re doing since I haven’t seen you since your birthday.”

Melinda gave him a genuine smile. “I’m good, Mack. Thanks for asking.”

He nodded briskly. “I know when my ex was pregnant, she had a rough go of it. You’ll let me know if there’s anything I can do for you or Daisy? Especially now that I’ve stolen this guy from you,” Mack clapped Phil on the shoulder. “I feel like I owe you one.”

May chuckled as she rested a hand briefly on her belly. “Right now, I think we’re fine. But later, I may hold you to that.”

“Good.” Mack’s phoned buzzed, and he looked at it unhappily. “Sorry guys, my meeting is here early. Phil smirked at the look on Melinda’s face as Mack surprised her by pulling her into a brief side-hug. “Coulson, I’ll get an update after your meeting tomorrow?”

“You’ve got it Director. I’ll call you when I’m done.”

“Great. See you both on Thursday.” Mack turned to head to his meeting, and over his shoulder called. “Enjoy your time off, guys!”

* * *

Phil was headed up to the quinjet to drop off their bags for later, and Melinda made her way to the bridge to hopefully find Yo-yo or Piper. Or maybe Davis to convince him to let her take the stick for a while. She had missed the power of the Zephyr being at her fingertips.

She saw Piper first, and the young agent fell into step beside her. “May. How’s it going?”

“Fine. How’s the secondary Strike team working out?”

Piper hesitated. “Uh. Good.”

May raised her eyebrows. “Sounds like it.”

“We’ve been having some issues in training, but Mack has me now using some of your techniques to whip them into shape like you did for me.”

“Good.” May gave her a brief smile. “Keep me updated. I’ll be glad to consult any time.”

“Even now?” Piper seemed skeptical.

Melinda kept her tone even, “What do you mean?”

“Since you’re pregnant.” Piper said

“How do you know?”

“Coulson said something last week about being excited about ‘the babies.’ And since Daisy said she’s not having twins… and plus, when you walked in today, it proved my theory was right. I mean, I have never once seen you wear a shirt that wasn’t fitted.”

* * *

Daisy had only been home alone for, like, half a day and she was already bored. She cleaned the breakfast mess in the kitchen before moving to the rest of the house. She swept, dusted, vacuumed, and started laundry.

Glancing at her watch, she saw it was almost 3 pm. No wonder she was exhausted. “Ok, baby. Just because May isn’t here doesn’t mean we can’t have our afternoon snack and a nap before auntie Jemma gets here later.”

She jolted awake some time later to Jemma pounding on the front door.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_ “Daisy! Are you alright?” _Knock! Knock! Knock!_

“Coming, Jem!” Shit. How long had she been asleep? It was dark outside.

The pounding continued until she whipped the door open. “You didn’t have to knock so loud,” she said grumpily.

Jemma followed Daisy through the doorway. “Sorry. May called as I was pulling into the driveway and said she couldn’t reach you, and then you didn’t answer the door right away, so I was starting to worry.”

May could not reach her? Daisy never heard her phone ring, but then where was her phone? She finally found it shoved between the cushions of the couch. “Oh, shit. I’ve got six missed calls from May. Hold on.”

Daisy only heard the line ring once before, “ _Daisy._ Tā mā de.” Uh, oh. May was pissed if she was swearing in Mandarin.

Jemma heard May’s voice through the phone and whispered, “She’s going to kill you.”

Daisy shot her a look that in no uncertain terms told her her to shut up. “I’m sorry, May. I was asleep and my phone fell between the couch cushions.”

She heard May breathe a sigh of relief, but there was still a slight note of worry in her voice. “I was fine until about the third missed call. And then there were several more and Jemma hadn’t heard from you either.”

“Don’t worry, we’re fine. And Jemma just walked in, so I’m not alone anymore.” Daisy was touched. This was such a mom thing to do. Or at least it was based on what little she could remember from the one or two friends she’d had in middle and high school who’d had over-protective parents. One girl had finally returned her mom’s phone calls after they got out of a movie, only to be yelled at for making her mother worry.

“Good. Tell Jemma I said hello, then.” May still sounded a little tense.

Daisy made her way to the kitchen. “I really am sorry if I made you worry, May." She paused briefly. "I love you,” she added softly.

Daisy and May were closer than either of them had ever imagined, but they showed their love more often than they said it. Even through the phone, she could almost feel the last of May’s frustration and worry melt away. “I love you, too, Dais. Call me tomorrow after Jemma leaves, ok?”

After they said their goodbyes, Daisy hung up and called back to Jemma, “Crisis averted! She’s not going to murder me when she gets home. Now can we please get some food? Me and the baby are hungry!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So literally, the whole conversation where May called Daisy six times was taken almost verbatim from a convo with my mom last week. Only my mom said a lot more curse words. Also, the friend Daisy mentions from high school was inspired by me being chewed out by my mom for the same reason. Always answer the phone from your mom, guys!
> 
> And if you're curious: Tā mā de= Fuck.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Sorry we couldn’t talk longer. Sleep well, and we’ll make it up to you when we get home tomorrow. xoxo.” 
> 
> Daisy couldn’t help but smile: two texts from May in one day, both of which ended with virtual hugs and kisses. May was turning into such a mom, and Daisy loved and missed her even more for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long delay in posting this. My schedule has been crazy lately, and for some reason I just could not get this chapter to a point where I was very happy with it. Don't worry, next chapter is already mostly written, so hopefully you'll get the next update sooner this time. :)
> 
> Also, I just watched this week's episode a little while ago and I 'm loving this season!

Melinda woke to Phil kissing her forehead, and she blinked a few times to bring him into focus. “Mmmm. What time is it?” she mumbled. 

“Almost lunch time,” Phil responded as he kicked off his shoes and laid on the bed facing her.

Lunch? How long had she been asleep? “Why didn’t you wake me earlier?”

“I knew you were exhausted after flying yesterday, so I thought I would let you sleep while I was at my meeting. Which, by the way, I _did_ manage to recruit a new head of the Communications division of the Academy this morning.” 

“Good,” she said with a tired smile. “If you were closer, I’d kiss you.” 

He grinned. “I think I can fix that,” Phil said as he wrapped her in his arms. 

Melinda kissed him softly before snuggling into him, tracing her fingers slowly across his chest and up to his sides. “What are we doing today?” 

“You know, I’m glad you asked.” Phil glanced at his watch. “We have lunch reservations in about half an hour.”

* * *

They’d had a pleasant lunch overlooking the harbor, and by the time they were done, it had warmed up enough for them to change into swimsuits to lounge on the beach. One factor Melinda had not considered when she agreed to come on this beach trip was that it was fall in Australia, and the mornings and evenings were cool and crisp. 

She struggled with the back of her swimsuit top for several minutes before she finally gave up. “Phil? Can you help me?” she called through the bathroom door. 

He materialized seemingly out of nowhere. “Whatcha need?” he stopped short when he saw her. 

“Look ok?” she asked, suddenly self-consciously as she clutched the top to her chest. Maybe the bikini was a bad idea…

“God, Mel. You look better than ok,” he said as he signaled her to turn around. 

She shivered as he traced a finger up her spine. “Even with the baby bump?” Melinda asked over her shoulder as he did the clasp on her swimsuit.

“ _Especially_ with the baby bump,” he said as he put his arms around her. 

Melinda hummed happily. “Alright, let’s go. I was promised sunshine and an ocean.” She gave him an appreciative peck on his cheek before heading to the door. “We didn’t fly all this way to stay in our Air BnB all day.”

* * *

May had finally stretched out on the bed that evening after a long afternoon at the beach and a nice dinner in. She stifled a yawn and glanced at the time – almost 11 pm – no wonder she was tired. She was tracing patterns across her belly absentmindedly while she waited on Phil to get done brushing his teeth and come to bed. In the day and a half they had been in Australia, they had had a great time, but she was ready to be back home. Their bed was much more comfortable than this one. And plus, she felt bad for leaving Daisy home alone. It was a small relief that Jemma was there to visit. 

She knew she shouldn’t worry about Daisy. In hindsight, she had probably overreacted when she couldn’t get ahold of her yesterday, but May couldn’t help herself. Melinda could blame her hormones, sure, but if she was honest, she knew she might worry a little too much about Daisy, especially now. Though not without reason; sometimes when Daisy thought no one was watching, Melinda could see how deep the emotional scars were from the hell they had been through the last couple of years. 

Her phone rang shrilly and she already knew who would be on the other end of the line. “Hey, Daisy.”

Daisy yawned widely before she spoke, her voice still raspy with sleep. “Hey.”

“Did you just get up?” May asked with a grin. She already knew the answer – if she remembered correctly it was near nine in the morning back home.

“Mmmhmm.” Daisy paused before continuing, “I think Jemma is making breakfast for me. I keep hearing things banging and her talking to herself down in the kitchen.”

“Well don’t let me keep you from your breakfast.”

Daisy yawned again, but sounded a little more awake when she spoke again. “It sounds like Jem will be a little bit anyway. You guys do anything fun today?”

Melinda and Daisy chatted for a good five minutes or so before Jemma had yelled up the stairs that breakfast was ready and Daisy had to go with a quick “I miss you guys” and an “I’ll call you later.”

As soon as she hung up, Phil walked through the doorway. “Damn it. Did I miss Daisy? I thought she wasn’t calling until Simmons leaves.” 

“She misses us,” she said with a yawn of her own.

Phil sat on the bed and edged his way toward her to rest his head gently on her belly. “You hear that baby? Your big sister misses us.”

Melinda ran her fingers through his hair. This was her favorite part of being pregnant – Phil talking to their unborn child. The act always caught her by surprise for some reason, even though he made a habit of doing it most nights before they went to sleep, even if just for a few seconds. 

He had obviously kept talking while she was lost in thought, and she started paying attention again in time to hear, “...and I wonder what we’ll name you? We haven’t talked about it yet. I guess we can start that discussion after we find out if you’re a boy or girl next week. Oh! And your sister Daisy will find out in a couple of days if she’s having a boy or girl, too. And then we’re going to start decorating a nursery for you. Plus, we’ve got to decorate the new garage apartment we are building for when our friends come visit. Before we know it, we will have a full house, and…” She tried to stay awake to hear the rest of the one-sided conversation, but ended up drifting off as her nerd of a husband began telling their baby about his Captain America collectibles.

* * *

“Oh good, you’re up.” Jemma said as she shot Daisy a big grin. “I thought I was going to have to come drag you out of bed like the old days.”

Daisy arched her eyebrows and feigned offense as she grabbed the plate Jemma held out for her. “For your information, I was up talking to May.”

“So-rry, Dais.” Jemma teased before turning to grab her own plate. “And how are May and Coulson enjoying Australia?”

“They went to the beach today apparently.” Daisy showed Jemma the photo May had texted her earlier with the message, ‘We miss you. xox.’ Coulson had obviously taken the selfie of the two of them, both in swimsuits and sunglasses with big smiles on their faces.

“Aww! I’ve rarely seen May look so happy!” She passed Daisy’s phone back with a smile. “Not to change the subject, but hurry up and eat breakfast. We’ve got an appointment to keep.”

* * *

As it turned out, Jemma had a spa day scheduled for them – manicures and pedicures – and Daisy was ecstatic. “I don’t think we’ve done this since our first year on the Bus,” she said as they were getting their toenails done.

“I know! My thinking exactly!” Jemma was just as excited as she was it seemed. “Do you remember when we went to that salon while we had some downtime in Oslo, and May was already inside getting a manicure?”

Daisy laughed. “And she gave us that _terrifying_ death glare and we just turned around and _left_.”

“Yes exactly! It’s hard to imagine that we were ever so scared of her.”

“I like to think we brought back the May that existed before Bahrain. Our little family on the Bus,” Daisy said, her smile turning to one of happy nostalgia. “I miss that time, you know. The Bus was the first place that ever felt like home.”

Jemma was looking at her curiously. “I know what you mean. The new base just isn’t the same, especially now that you, May, and Coulson are gone.” She paused briefly. “But you’re having a baby! May and Coulson are having a baby. Fitz and I are engaged. We’re all in such a different place from where we started.”

Daisy’s mouth had fallen open in surprise. “Hold up. What did you just say?”

“Well, Daisy, it’s not like it’s a surprise that you’re pregnant. You already knew that,” Jemma said with a sly grin.

“No, no. After that.”

Jemma kept feigning innocence. “What? You already knew May was pregnant, too. I mean, you knew before I did for goodness sake.”

“ _Jemma.”_

Her friend reached into her pocket and pulled out a ring she quickly slipped on to her left hand. “What do you think?” she asked as she thrust her hand toward Daisy for approval.

“Oh my God!” Daisy grabbed Jemma’s hand to examine the ring. “OH MY GOD!” she exclaimed as she pulled Jemma into as close to a hug as she could manage with the space between their chairs and her belly getting in the way.

“I assume this means, you’re happy for us?” Jemma asked giddily.

Daisy released her and settled back into her chair. After a quick apology to the kind lady painting her toenails, she said turned back to Jemma. “Of course, I’m happy for you! But you could’ve led with that yesterday! Talk about burying the lead.”

“To be honest, that’s half of why I wanted to take you to get manicures. A girl’s got to have cute nails to show off her ring!”

* * *

The pair of friends finished out their day with lunch and some shopping. One store they’d gone to had a marvelous baby section, where Jemma had found a set of Harry Potter onesies she insisted on buying for Daisy. “But Daisy, look! This one says Dumbledore’s Army! Oh, and this one has little quidditch posts and says, ‘I’m a keeper.’ That’s it, I’m buying these!”

Daisy was pleased with her purchases, too. She bought Coulson a pair of retro inspired Captain America pajamas and Captain America lapel pin to wear on his recruiting missions, and for May, she got a couple of books about the WASPs (Women Airforce Service Pilots) from World War II and a new pair of really cool aviator sunglasses to replace the pair Daisy had accidentally scratched a few weeks earlier.

By the time Jemma dropped her off at home, the sun had already set. She waved Jemma out of the driveway, and immediately googled what time it was in Sydney to make sure she wouldn’t wake up May and Coulson if she called now.

Once she saw it was mid-morning, Daisy decided to video call them, and Coulson answered on the second ring with an excited, “Daisy!”

She smiled happily at him. “Hey, I missed you earlier when I called. Are you guys having a good time?”

“Wonderful. The beach was marvelous yesterday, and we just got done eating breakfast out on the deck. Oh….” He dropped his voice to a whisper. “Melinda tried to cook this morning and it did not go well.”

Daisy snorted. Somehow, she wasn’t surprised. May was amazing at literally everything else in the world, but she could not do much in the kitchen. “Well, I see you’ve still got walls around you, so at least she didn’t burn the house down.”

Before he could respond, she heard May somewhere off camera. “Is that Daisy?” and in a moment, May had sat down in Coulson’s lap so she could be in the frame to talk to Daisy, too. “How was your day with Jemma?”

Daisy had to recount their day of shopping and mani-pedis for them, making sure not to ruin the surprise of Fitz and Jemma’s engagement. Honestly, Daisy didn’t realize quite how much she had missed her parents until she saw them both smiling at her from the phone screen. A wave of homesickness washed over her, and she couldn't stop herself from asking, “So when will you guys be home? This time difference has me all confused.” Was it possible to be homesick for people? Her safe place had always been with them, so maybe it was.

“Tomorrow night,” May said.

That wasn’t helpful. “My tomorrow night or your tomorrow night?”

“Yours.” Coulson said with a grin. “Oh, damn. Daisy, I’m sorry, but I’ve got to go. Mack is calling on the other line, and we’ve got some details to iron out for the new Communications director.”

They had just enough time for a quick goodbye, but her phone buzzed with a text almost as soon as she had hung up. “Sorry we couldn’t talk longer. Sleep well, and we’ll make it up to you when we get home tomorrow. xoxo.” Daisy couldn’t help but smile: two texts from May in one day, both of which ended with virtual hugs and kisses. May was turning into such a mom, and Daisy loved and missed her even more for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, so sorry if this story feels like it's moving a little slow. Time will start passing a little more quickly soon though, don't worry!


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I had almost all of what is posted in this chapter written before I posted the last chapter, but haven't been in much of a writing mood lately. Then I found out a couple of days ago I was potentially exposed to Covid by my dad when I went home for a visit last week(he's waiting for his test results to come back), and then I really wasn't in a writing mood. If it was just me I was worried about, it wouldn't be a big deal, but literally every person I work with is at high risk due to either their age or pre-existing conditions. I'm not super worried since the Department of Health said the chance of me getting it from my dad was low since we were social distancing, and even if I did, we are social distancing and wearing masks at work, so the chance I could've given it to someone else is even lower. But talk about putting a damper on your mood during a long weekend. This chapter was originally supposed to be longer, but because of above reasons, this chapter was posted as is and shorter than I intended. I'm editing on the fly here, so please forgive any errors and contradictions and such.
> 
> Any way, all that to say - even if you think you're being careful to avoid Covid, you're still at risk. I'm not trying to preach, but I will no longer be visiting people outside of my household(even with social distancing) until the Covid situation gets better. In my state, our numbers are continually rising, so here's hoping our leadership does something about it. Be safe out there, everyone!
> 
> TL;DR - This chapter hasn't really been edited, and wasn't as long as I originally planned. Hope you enjoy anyway!

“Before we get started Ms. Johnson, do you want to know the sex of the baby?” the technician asked.

Daisy was full of nervous excitement. “Yes. I do.”

The technician moved the wand across Daisy’s lower belly, trying to find the right angle. With a smile she said, “Baby is in good position. Looks like we are measuring right on track, and everything looks perfect!”

Her grip on Melinda’s hand tightened as she waited with bated breath.

After another few moments they heard, “Oh, there we are! Looks like you’ll be having a sweet little boy!”

She looked to May, who asked, “And he’s healthy? Everything looks fine?”

“Wonderful!” The tech handed Daisy a towel to wipe off the gel from the ultrasound. “I’ll print these images for you, and then you’ll be good to go!”

As they made their way to the car, May said, “You’re having a boy.”

“Yeah.” Daisy felt him moving and put a hand on her belly. It was still weird to think of the baby as a _he_ instead of an _it_. That would take some getting used to. But a _boy_. She thought she didn’t want a boy, but she was getting used to the idea already. Boys seemed easier; less dramatic and less likely to insist on watching Snow White, Cinderella, and all the other ‘damsel in distress’ princess movies that little girls seemed to obsess over.

“And you’re ok with that?”

Daisy had known May had been watching her for the past few minutes to gauge her reaction. “I think I am.” She gave her mother a quick smile. “The idea is growing on me at least.”

May returned the smile. “Good.”

After they were on the road home, Daisy’s mind began to wander. There was so much to do in the next few months. Cribs to buy, rooms to paint, child birthing classes to attend. Would it be easier if both babies shared one bedroom until they were older? Then they could use one of the spare rooms as a nursery and the other as a playroom. But how long was she going to live with May and Coulson? Who would watch the baby if she went back to Shield? May and Coulson didn’t exactly live close to the base, but she wouldn’t trust anyone but her family to watch her baby for the first year or two at least.

And come to think of it, what was her baby going to call them? May would be easy for a toddler to say, but Coulson wasn’t going to roll off the tongue of somebody learning to talk. Actually, why was she still calling them Coulson and May? She’d been living with them for months now, and they were no longer her superiors. Now they were… well. The line was blurry, but they were not just coworkers, that much was certain. Coulson cooked her favorite foods whenever he had time, helped her meal prep for when he was out of town, and just in general did all the typical _dad_ things for and with her. And who knew that Melinda May, a certified bad ass, was capable of being so soft? And even more surprising was how much she _talked._ Well comparatively, speaking at least.

“May?” she asked tentatively.

“Yeah?”

With any luck this would go well. “What do you want my baby to call you and Coulson?”

Melinda glanced at her briefly before turning her gaze back to the road. “What did you have in mind?” she asked cautiously.

“Well. I guess whatever you guys are comfortable with.” Daisy fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “Somehow grandma and grandpa seem weird, but so does May and Coulson. And I feel like it’s even weirder if my kid calls you Phil and Melinda, when I don’t even call you that. But he can’t just yell ‘hey you!’ when he wants your attention.”

“You can pick anything you want.” May realized her mistake and continued quickly before Daisy had time for a cheeky remark. “So long as it’s within reason.”

* * *

Melinda woke to the irritatingly repetitive knocks of a hammer for the sixth day in a row. _Damn the construction workers for starting so early._

The door burst open and Daisy walked in in a huff. “Can we go somewhere?”

“What’s wrong? Where are we going?” May was still half asleep, but she could tell Daisy was agitated.

“Anywhere.” Daisy was digging through the stack of clean laundry on top of the dresser and threw a pair of shorts and t-shirt at May. “The vibrations from all the hammering and sawing have been driving me crazy all week, and I can’t take it again today. I’ve _got_ to get out of here.”

“Give me ten minutes, and we’ll go for a walk. Get some exercise.” Construction noise was bad enough on its own, but Melinda couldn’t even fathom how it was making Daisy feel with her hypersensitivity to vibrations.

Melinda dressed quickly, and Daisy, who was waiting anxiously in the foyer, threw open the door and lead the way outside before Melinda had even gotten to the bottom of the staircase. As they walked further from the house though, the change in Daisy was visible within a few minutes: her shoulders relaxed and her brow unfurrowed.

“Feeling better?”

Daisy nodded. “Instead of feeling like I’m in a swarm of bees, it’s more like that dizzy feeling when you get off a roller coaster. You can tell you’re not quite at equilibrium, but there’s nothing you can do about it but wait.”

“Why didn’t you tell us earlier that you were having problems with your powers?” Melinda asked concernedly.

Daisy shrugged. “I mean, I’m not, really. I think I’m just a little more sensitive than usual.”

“Any idea why?” May tried to keep her tone light, but knowing Daisy was having problems was concerning on a number of levels. Especially since when Daisy had first gotten her powers, she had nearly brought the base down around her, and then began to internalize her powers and hurt herself.

“Maybe because I haven’t really quaked anything or worn my gauntlets in months.”

May chanced a quick glance at Daisy; she had her jaw set squarely, but Melinda could see the worry behind the mask. Sometimes, Daisy was so much like her that it was hard to believe they weren’t related.

“Have you talked to FitzSimmons to see if they can design you some modified gauntlets? Just to dull everything for the time being?”

Daisy chuckled. “Great minds think alike, I guess. I called her this morning before I came bursting into your room.” She shot Melinda an apologetic look. “Sorry about that by the way.”

Melinda pulled Daisy to a stop. “I’m not worried about being woken up unexpectedly.” She put one hand on her belly and gestured toward Daisy’s with the other. “It’s not like we won’t be losing sleep with these two in the near future anyway. But I worry about you, Daisy. We’ve both been through more than any one person should have to endure in one lifetime. I told you before that you don’t get to choose who cares about you. And Phil and I, we care about you _so much.”_ Melinda had to pause in the middle of her speech to blink back tears that were starting to well in her eyes. Stupid hormones making her emotional. “I want you to be happy, and to talk to us when you’re not. Whether it’s something small and insignificant like being out of your favorite color popsicle or something big like your powers being out of whack. We can’t fix everything, but at least you won’t have to be alone.”

“Being pregnant has really softened you up.” Daisy sniffed and wiped at her eyes. “You just said you _wanted_ to talk.”

May rolled her eyes and punched Daisy’s arm playfully. “I know. But I blame Phil, more than I blame her. He insists on talking about everything.” Her hand instinctively went back to her belly as she referenced her daughter.

Daisy’s eyes widened almost comically. “Did I hear right? Did you say _her?”_

Damn it. She was going to wait until Phil was home in a few days to tell them both together. With a sigh, she said “The doctor called yesterday afternoon with the results of the amnio. Don’t worry, everything was completely fine, but she did let slip that it’s a girl.”

“Congratulations!” Daisy’s eyes still looked a little watery, but she did have a huge grin on her face at least. “Oh, man. Coulson is going to flip!”

* * *

Phil was finally home. He’d been gone a week this time and had missed his family terribly. As he pulled into the driveway, he glanced at the clock: just after 1 a.m. Daisy and Melinda were both likely to be in bed by now.

That said, he was surprised when he opened the front door and saw light coming from the living room. He dropped his duffle at the door and toed off his shoes before making his way to see who was still up at this hour.

“Hey. What’re you still doing up at this late?” He’d half expected one or both of them to be asleep on the couch, but it seemed like she was still wide awake.

Daisy’s voice was thick and sounded like she had been crying. “Hey. I felt like I needed to cry so I’m watching this super sad movie.”

“Can I join you? I’m still a little too wired to sleep.”

She patted the couch cushion next to her in invitation.

“So, what is this? What’s it about?” Phil tried to remember if he and Mel had watched this one yet. He recognized Kathy Bates and a dark-haired actress he knew by sight but couldn’t remember her name.

“It’s called _P.S. I Love You._ Gerard Butler dies, but before he does, he writes a series of letters to his wife that she would get periodically to help her get through his death.” She blew her nose and took a shaky breath. “And he signs each one with ‘P.S. I love you.’”

Ah. He and Melinda had purposely skipped this one. Melinda may make light of their respective deaths from time to time, but she admitted she wasn’t up for a feature film to remind her of the experiences.

The movie had apparently been mostly over when he came in, and Daisy had soon been reduced to a puddle of tears yet again when the character received her final letter from her late husband. Phil put an arm around Daisy’s shoulders and she buried herself in his embrace, sobbing openly.

Soon though, her crying slowed, and he eventually felt her breathing even out. Bless her. She had cried herself to sleep.

Phil readjusted slightly, getting a little more comfortable on the couch. Melinda was always telling him that Daisy didn’t sleep well, and he wasn’t going to be the one to disturb her when she was finally asleep. He yawned widely and pulled a blanket off the back of the couch to cover Daisy. It was chilly in the house at night with the air conditioning running.

He was almost asleep when a thought struck him. _Oh, damn it._ He was supposed to give Daisy the new bracelets FitzSimmons had designed for her. He yawned widely and made a mental note to give them to her in the morning.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Daisy has some problems with her powers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg, you guys! I'm so so sorry for how long it's taken to update this! In my mind it had only been a month or so since I updated. But when I looked yesterday it's been THREE months. 
> 
> Anyway, for the 3 or 4 of you still reading, thank you!! 
> 
> Again, so sorry that it took so long for an update. <3

“I want you to sit down when you try them on, Daisy,” Simmons said through the video call. “I know your gauntlets made you a bit woozy until we got them calibrated correctly, and I don’t want you to fall.”

Daisy scoffed but pulled out a bar stool and sat down anyway. “Coulson and May are both here in the kitchen with me. I don’t think they’d let me actually hit the floor.” She examined the two bracelets Simmons had sent home with Phil. They were black with tiny, diagonal silver stripes, and looked similar to the Shield issued smart watch she sometimes wore. “At least they match most of my wardrobe.”

“Yes, well I have met you before, you know,” Simmons smirked. “Now they won’t activate until you power them both – one can’t work alone.”

Daisy slipped one on each wrist and pressed the buttons Jemma had indicated. The effect was instantaneous, and she was glad she had taken Jemma’s advice to sit down. All the vibrations around her were dulled, none of them threatening to overwhelm her anymore, but at the same time her vision blurred and she was so lightheaded she thought she might fall off the stool. “Okay... These might be a little strong, Jem.”

May was by her side in an instant with a steadying hand on her shoulder. “You alright?” she asked quietly.

“Not great,” Daisy said, as she gripped the countertop tightly to keep herself upright.

Jemma started tapping away on her tablet. “Okay, hold on. I can recalibrate remotely.” 

Suddenly Daisy could see again. She took a moment to take stock and test her limits. She could feel the vibrations from things around her when she wanted to, but she could also tune them out when she didn’t.

Simmons spoke again. “Is that better?”

Daisy nodded. “Feels more like when I wear my mission gauntlets.”

“So these will act as a dampener for her senses?” May was tense, keeping her eyes on Simmons on the monitor.

“That’s the hope at least, May. We’re in sort of uncharted territory here, if I’m honest. With all our accumulated knowledge of Inhumans, we’ve never had to deal with pregnancy in any of our agents before. As I told Daisy the other day when she called, I honestly don’t know why she’s feeling everything so strongly right now. It could be anything from a buildup of potential energy from lack of use of her powers, or her hormones just making her more sensitive, or even just somehow the pregnancy heightening her senses as part of an evolutionary protection. It could be anything, really.”

Daisy felt May’s grip on her shoulder tighten and covered her hand with her own. “I’m fine, May.”

Simmons started clacking away on her tablet again. “Now, Daisy, please remember, on the off chance you need to use your powers, these do not have all of the properties of your gauntlets. These are equivalent to a horse wearing blinders in that they only serve to keep you from being overwhelmed by your surroundings. If you use your powers, they won’t protect you.”

Slightly affronted by being compared to a horse, Daisy thanked Jemma quickly and promised to check in periodically. Truthfully, everything was blissfully quiet compared to just a few minutes earlier. She hadn’t realized just how loud everything had gotten until the noise was taken away.

“You sure you’re ok, Dais?” May asked. “Do you want some tea or something?”

Coulson took a step closer, looking at her concernedly. “You are a little pale, kid.”

“I’m actually better than I’ve been in a while,” she said with a small grin. When she stood however, she knew something was wrong - her vision blurred, and then everything seemed to tilt sideways.

* * *

Melinda saw the color drain from Daisy’s face and knew what was about to happen. Her mug slipped from her hands as she lunged toward Daisy, knowing she wasn’t close enough to reach her in time.

Somehow though, Phil managed to get to Daisy and barely kept her from hitting her head on the tile floor as she passed out. May watched him with bated breath as he eased her the last few inches to the floor and rolled her to her side. When he spoke, his voice was soft and calm, but she could feel the worry emanating from him. “Simmons is going to have to make some more major changes to these cuffs.”

She had just dropped to her knees next to Phil just as Daisy began to stir. As her eyelids started to flutter, Melinda cupped her cheek gently, and Daisy’s eyes finally opened fully.

With a groan, Daisy tried to push herself up off the floor.

“Shhh. Stay where you are, Dais,” May told her softly, but put a firm hand on Daisy’s shoulder holding her down. “You just fainted. It’s ok.”

Daisy visibly relaxed at the sound of May’s voice. “Fainted? Why?” she asked softly, as she blinked to clear her vision.

“We’re going to find out.” Phil sounded much more confident than he looked. “Melinda, are you okay to sit with her for a minute? I’m going to call Simmons and see what she recommends.”

Melinda nodded and moved closer, letting Daisy’s head rest on her thigh.

Daisy settled quickly in May’s lap. “How long was I out?” Daisy mumbled.

“Less than a minute,” May assured her, though the moment had seemed to stretch for an eternity.

Phil hung up the phone as he rounded the corner back into the kitchen. “Simmons wants us to bring her in this afternoon. She said Daisy should start feeling better once we get the cuffs off.” He sat back down on the tile on Daisy’s other side. “How’re you feeling?” he asked.

“Dizzy,” she said with her eyes shut tight.

Once the cuffs were off, Daisy tried to sit up again, but Melinda wouldn’t have it. “No,” she said with a firm hand once again on Daisy’s shoulder. “Stay down a few more minutes to recover. I don’t want you to pass out again.”

Daisy didn’t protest and stayed in Melinda’s lap for a few more minutes before they let her sit up, but she was unhappy when they still wouldn’t let her try to stand.

“I’m  _ fine _ guys,” she pouted, crossing her arms on top of her bump. “Really. Now that the cuffs are off, I just want to get off the damn floor.” Daisy leaned her head back against the wall behind her. “You can get up if you want. I know you can’t be comfortable either,” she told Melinda, frustration evident in her voice.

As a compromise, Phil had offered to carry Daisy to the couch, and she surprisingly agreed, which only spoke to how horrible she was obviously still feeling, despite her claims to the contrary. “I’ll be right back to help you up, Mel,” Phil said as he scooped Daisy up off the floor.

Daisy snickered, but tried unsuccessfully to pass it off as a cough, from Coulson’s arms, no doubt amused at the look of disdain on Melinda’s face. May loved that Phil took such good care of her and Daisy, but it was frustrating that she was having to become more reliant on him. She and Daisy now got winded trying to unload the dishwasher so they didn’t have much choice.

Melinda managed to get to her knees before Phil returned and tried to help her up. “No,” she said stubbornly, pushing his hand away. “I’ve got it.”

To his credit, Phil just arched his eyebrows and stood watching her as she used one of the bar stools to pull herself to her feet.

Melinda was slightly out of breath and was trying and failing to hide it from Phil. “Told you I had it.”

“I never doubted you,” he said with a smirk.

She rubbed a hand across her belly; their daughter apparently had the hiccups, and Melinda could feel them every few seconds. It was surprisingly endearing and brought a smile to her face. “Not too bad considering I’m six months pregnant, right?”

He was still smirking at her. “You know, you and Daisy have the same stubborn streak,” Phil teased.

Melinda gave him a smile. “Just wait, Phil. I think this little girl is going to be just the same as her mama and big sister.” May lowered her voice so Daisy couldn’t hear from the next room. “Speaking of big sister…”

Phil sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “I don’t know what to do, Mel. I’m worried about her.”

“She seems happier, but from experience, pregnancy is…” May paused, looking for the right word. “Uh.... not easy. And now she’s got this thing with her powers?” Melinda shook her head, wishing desperately there was something she could do to help Daisy.

“I know. I didn’t realize how much she was struggling since I haven’t been here as much…” Phil held out a hand, and Melinda took it, allowing him to pull her gently into his arms. “Simmons will be able to sort it out this afternoon,” he whispered, as he rubbed Melinda’s back comfortingly.

May nodded but kept her doubts to herself. They didn’t know much about Inhuman biology, and even then, whatever was happening with Daisy could be specific to her and her power. Simmons’ theory had been something to that effect anyway, hadn’t it?

* * *

Simmons had performed test after test on Daisy, gathering any data she thought would even be remotely helpful in figuring out Daisy’s adverse reaction to the cuffs, or even why Daisy needed the cuffs to begin with. Now that she had analyzed all the data, Jemma had asked Daisy to bring Phil and Melinda to her office and wait for her to join them.

Phil had let the two ladies have the chairs, propping himself against the wall behind them. The longer Simmons kept them waiting, the more tension seemed to linger in the air between the trio.

“Stop fidgeting, Daisy,” Melinda chided after a couple of minutes.

Daisy abruptly stopped clicking her fingernails against the arm of her chair. “Sorry.”

Melinda was sitting unnaturally still, the only sign of her unease, but Daisy couldn’t help her nervous movements and started picking her cuticles.

A few more minutes passed and Jemma burst through the doorway, arms loaded with folders and reports. “Sorry, sorry. I promise I didn’t intend to keep you waiting for so long.”

All three of them were watching her anxiously as she put her armload of paperwork onto the desk and turned to finally face them.

“Well you all look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Her joke fell flat. Jemma shook her head, “Yes, sorry. This is a serious matter.” She sighed heavily and opened a file in front of her. “In short I have no idea what we’re dealing with, Daisy.”

Daisy could feel Coulson and May’s eyes on her as leaned back in her chair and propped her hands on her bump. “So, what do I do?”

“Well,” Simmons flipped to a page near the back of her file and handed it over to Daisy, who began trying to decipher FitzSimmons’ drafting notes. “We have a couple of options, but you’re not going to like them.”

“What are they?” Melinda asked quietly.

Daisy turned the folder sideways to read the notes in the margins. Did that say what she thought it said? “No. I’m not doing this.” Daisy said vehemently, tossing the folder back on the desk.

Everyone looked at her in surprise.

“Daisy, it’s only one option. I’ve done every test and taken every reading I can possibly think of. There is no logical reason those cuffs knocked you out cold. Nor can I find any logical reason for your heightened senses either.”

“I won’t do it, Jemma,” Daisy said determinedly.

“Are you two going to fill us in?” Phil asked curiously.

Jemma looked pleadingly at Daisy. “If you’d let me explain, I don’t necessarily think you should. It would be a cost-benefit analysis, and we would only do it as a last resort and  _ only  _ at your request.”

May shifted in her seat, angling for a better view of Daisy. “Are we talking about somehow disabling your powers?”

Both Simmons and Daisy nodded.

“What’s option two?” Phil asked from behind her.

Simmons sighed. “Well I suppose you could say it’s more like three options. In addition to inhibiting Daisy’s powers completely, which I think is only a last resort option due to potential complications, we could also do nothing and she could just limit her exposure to any stressors.”

Daisy scoffed. “There’s construction at home. I can’t escape the noise.”

“I know. Which is why I’m proposing we try option three. We can continue to refine the cuffs and see if we can figure something out,” Jemma explained. “There’s obviously something going on since your gauntlets induced a similar reaction when we tested those earlier today.”

“Fine,” Daisy said moodily. “Keep ‘refining’ them then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you'd like to leave a comment, I'd love to hear from you!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys! I'm trying to keep up with this fic and a couple of other multi-chaps, write some one shots, plan a Christmas fic, somehow read fanfic that I've gotten behind on, keep up with with my day-job, try to maintain some type of exercise routine, drink enough water, and try to eat something other than spaghetti-o's, all without losing my mind. (Spoiler alert! It's not going well!) 
> 
> I promise I'm not giving up on this fic and will update as I can! Thanks for sticking with me this far. I mean, y'all are amazing and I love you all!! Over 200 Kudos on this fic just. Wow. It blows my mind that a random idea I had that sounded half crazy is being enjoyed by so many people!

Melinda was _bored._ Phil was gone yet again, this time location scouting for the upcoming academy, and Daisy was still at the base working with Simmons to get her new inhibitors sorted out. Which left Melinda home alone.

It was a curious thing, being by herself. For as long as she could remember she’d been in close proximity to all of her fellow Shield agents, and then after their retirement she had been with Phil and Daisy every day.

Now she had to figure out what to do with her time. She had already finished the last few chapters of the book Daisy had given her, done her Tai Chi and gone for a walk, called Phil to check in, texted with Daisy, and cleaned the house, but when she glanced at her watch it was barely even lunch time.

“Well, what do you want to do, baby?” she asked her bump rhetorically. “Want to take a nap? Watch a movie? Try to bake something to cheer up your sister?”

Even she had to scoff at that last suggestion - Phil and Daisy still wouldn’t let her boil water after she had somehow cracked the glass stovetop trying to make macaroni and cheese for Daisy _one time._

Melinda was not a cook by any means, but it gave her another idea. She sighed heavily, pulled out her phone and dialed.

The line rang twice before her mother answered. “Qiaolian? What’s wrong?”

“Does something have to be wrong for me to call, māmā?”

Her mother scoffed derisively. “Have to be? No. But I don’t hear from you often otherwise.”

Melinda rolled her eyes. “Everything is _fine_. But Daisy -“

“Aha!” She interrupted Melinda, “I knew there was a but! What is going on with my oldest granddaughter?”

“She’s just having trouble with her powers, and-“

Her mother cut her off yet again. “Trouble with her powers? The pregnancy is causing this?”

Melinda sighed again. Phone conversations with her mother were not easy- Lian’s years as an agent with the CIA had trained her to get all the pertinent details immediately, and even though she had been retired for many years, the habit had stuck. Heaven help you if you were on the other end of the line and couldn’t give the details out fast enough.

“We don’t know for sure, but we’re working on it. What I wanted to know is if you would be willing to cook a few of Daisy’s favorite meals and send them to us? I’m sure we could get Phil to swing by on his way home tomorrow and pick it up.”

“Nonsense. I will pack a bag and he can bring _me_ to visit for a few days.”

Uh oh. Not what she had in mind. “I don’t know if Daisy will be up for company…”

“I’m family, not company, Qiaolian. If you don’t want me to come, then just say so.”

“It’s not that I don’t _want_ you to visit, we just have a lot going on between the construction on the expansion, Daisy’s powers being on the fritz, and both Daisy and I are all over the place from the hormones…” She paused, giving her mother a chance to interject, but she was met with only silence. “But I’ll have Phil call you to schedule a time to pick you up tomorrow if you don’t mind the craziness around here.”

“Tell Philip I look forward to hearing from him then. And tell my granddaughter not to worry. I will make her anything she wants while I am there.”

* * *

“I’m hoooooome!!” Daisy called through the house. She kicked off her shoes and dropped her bags inside the door. “May? Do you wanna watch tv with me? With Jemma poking and prodding me and putting me through the ringer for two days, I’m too tired to do anything productive!” she added as she flopped onto the couch and propped her feet up. A moment passed and she still heard no response. “May?” she called again.

Again, no response. The SUV had been in the driveway when Simmons had dropped her off, so May had to be around here somewhere. The longer she searched for Melinda the more worried she became.

Daisy breathed a sigh of relief when she finally found May in one of the new rocking chairs (gifts from FitzSimmons) in what would eventually be the nursery. Melinda was fast asleep, a copy of _The Very Hungry Caterpillar_ propped open against her chest.

May must’ve heard the door open, and she stirred, blinking a few times to clear her vision. “Dais. You’re home early.”

Daisy chuckled as she eased herself down into the second rocking chair. “Um, no. I was actually like an hour late.” She nodded toward the book May still had in her possession. “Why are you reading kid’s books?”

To her surprise, May looked suddenly a little embarrassed. “Oh. I was reading to your sister.” She ran a hand over her bump before dropping the book gently back in the box she had pulled it from. “You know they can hear everything so I thought it would be good for her.” They may have a nice pair of rocking chairs, but they hadn’t gotten any other furniture for the room yet. The few clothes, books, and toys they had were gifts from the team, who couldn’t seem to help themselves when it came to cute baby things.

Daisy grinned. “You’re such a good mom.” She had always thought of May as a mother figure, but Daisy and FitzSimmons had been adults when they met her, much too old for bedtime stories. Now May was going to have a chance to be a mom and grandmother to two sweet little babies. It made Daisy’s heart so happy that May was getting this chance.

May scoffed. “I’m not a mom yet.”

“Um, _rude_! Did you just forget that I existed when you said that?” Daisy deadpanned.

“Cut me some slack. I was just woken up from a nap and my brain hasn’t caught up yet.” May teased as she settled back into the chair and closed her eyes once again, both hands propped on top of belly.

“Well excuse me for worrying about a _very_ pregnant lady who didn’t answer when I called.”

May hummed, obviously amused. “Daisy, I hate to point it out, but you’re more pregnant than I am.”

Daisy chuckled. “At this point, a few weeks is nothing.”

They sat in silence for a few seconds before Daisy spoke again. “Do you wanna watch a movie or something? I’ve had a bitch of a time the last few days and could use the distraction.”

“Did you get your inhibitors sorted out at least?”

“Yes, and no,” Daisy said dejectedly. “Basically, we have a temporary fix, but still no cause as to _why_ my powers are driving me crazy. Simmons said we will ‘wait and see.’”

Melinda reached over and took Daisy’s hand. “We’ll get it figured out, Dais.”

“Yeah.” Daisy sighed heavily before changing the subject. “So are you going to stay in here all day or….. Like, what’s the plan?”

May didn’t even open her eyes to respond, obviously still trying to fall back asleep. “Daisy, baby, I love you, but _shhh_. Let’s just enjoy the quiet before the storm, ‘kay?”

Daisy was a little taken aback that May had called her ‘baby,’ but she had to admit she loved it. “What storm?” Daisy asked in confusion.

“My mother is coming to visit. She’ll be here tomorrow.”

* * *

If her fellow Shield agents thought Melinda May was intimidating, she could be seen as warm and fuzzy compared to her mother. Phil noticed the nervous looks Lian was getting from all of the agents milling around base when they disembarked the quinjet. One stern glance from Lian had two junior agents practically running for cover.

Even Simmons, who was practiced at dealing with May, seemed nervous around Lian. Luckily though, she still greeted them happily and engaged Lian in conversation as Phil and Davis went ahead to put Lian’s bags in the SUV.

“Coulson, what the hell does she have in here that weighs so much?” Davis asked slightly out of breath from the effort of carrying the heaviest of the bags.

“Pretty sure she brought her whole kitchen. Melinda said her mother plans to do a lot of cooking and apparently our kitchenware is, and I quote, ‘insufficient,’” Phil explained as he opened the trunk of the vehicle.

“Ah. I see.” Davis said with a smirk. “Sounds kinda like my mother-in-law.” They heaved the bags into the trunk. “Nothing is ever up to her standards.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better, Davis?” Phil asked with a chuckle.

“Oh hell no,” he responded seriously. “It’s a warning, Coulson. Mother-in-laws like ours are impossible to please, so just smile and nod your way through the visit.”

Phil didn’t have a chance to reply before Lian was calling his name and striding toward him. “Philip? As much as I have enjoyed talking to your young scientist friend about her recent engagement, I believe my daughter and granddaughter are expecting us at a reasonable hour. Shall we go?”


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lian visits, and she and Melinda start working out some of their past issues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So, it's been a long time since I updated, but I haven't abandoned you all! I've just been writing this out of order and finally got this part written so I could post. 
> 
> Enjoy!

May woke to the sounds of a pan clattering in the kitchen below, noticing it was still pitch black outside. There was another loud noise followed by the faint whistle of the tea kettle. It could only be one person – her mother.

Phil stirred next to her, obviously having been awakened by the commotion as well. He pulled her gently toward him and his chest was flush against her back and he could put a hand on her stomach, tracing soft circles with his fingertips. “Your mom is awake awfully early.  _ Again.” _

Melinda twined their fingers together and let him continue caressing her bump. “Mmhmm.”

“Any idea when she’s going to-“

“Get the hell out of our house?” she finished for him.

Phil chuckled sleepily. “I was going to word it a little differently, but yes.”

She smiled. Phil was too polite considering the abrupt notice she had given him that Lian would be coming to stay for an unknown length of time. “I have no idea. She hasn’t mentioned when she plans to leave, but since she’s been here for a week, I’m hoping it’ll be sooner rather than later.”

“At least she likes Daisy. Otherwise, I’d be in more of a rush for her to leave.”

Melinda scoffed. “I’d really like her to leave already, but I agree – she is good with Daisy.”

It was true – Lian and Daisy seemed to enjoy each other’s company. She was kind and thoughtful, willing to teach Daisy to cook, and she seemed to have almost infinite patience when Daisy didn’t understand an instruction or know how to do something. Lian was also warm and affectionate with Daisy – giving hugs and praise in abundance.

Some part of Melinda always felt a tiny twinge of jealousy when she witnessed these moments, thinking back to her mother’s strict, somewhat distant persona when she had been growing up. Melinda had wanted that affection from her mother, had craved it for years when she was a small child and saw other little girls with their moms.

But she had mostly made her peace with that long ago. Now it was just being brought to the forefront because Melinda was learning her mother had always been capable of the love and affection she had desired, it was just that for some reason, her mother didn’t choose to show it to her.

Melinda couldn’t blame Daisy – she was glad Daisy had one more person to love her and make her feel like family. Daisy had missed out on too much living in orphanages and foster homes throughout her childhood, and Melinda couldn’t begrudge her that.

Phil must have fallen back asleep, as his hand had stilled, still draped over the swell of her stomach. And if she was honest, this was the only part of being pregnant she actually enjoyed – these soft, quiet moments with Phil. He was so excited to be a dad and a grandpa. She had no doubt he would be amazing with a baby, and she couldn’t wait to see him with their daughter in his arms.

Phil was working his ass off to get the academy up and running before she and Daisy gave birth – he wanted to take some time off to be there for a few months when that finally happened. It was true, their lives were about to be turned upside down within the next few months, and nothing was going to be the same ever again. Everything was changing so quickly, but she was ready to see what the future had in store.

There was a soft rap at the door, and Melinda jumped, startled out of her train of thought.

“Guys? Lian’s got tea and breakfast ready if you’re up,” Daisy called softly from outside the door.

Phil stirred once again at the sound of Daisy’s voice. “Thanks! We’ll be down soon.”

Daisy’s footsteps faded down the hallway, and they were alone once again.

“Come on, Melinda,” Phil said, kissing her cheek softly. “Let’s go face your mother yet again. Once we get this day over with, we will be one step closer to having our house back.”

* * *

Ten days into Lian’s visit, Phil was starting to regret his decision to work from home. He didn’t mind that Melinda had started hanging out in his office with him to avoid her mother. It was nice to have her input on his work, actually. Plus it didn’t hurt that she usually sat cuddled against him, or with her feet in his lap, or running her fingers through his hair as they each read through a stack of files and reports.

The problem, however, was that Lian was teaching Daisy to cook, and as a result, there was a constant clanging of pans, the dull thud of a knife against a chopping board, or the sizzle of something cooking in the wok. All the noise made it nearly impossible to concentrate on the work at hand or pay attention to the discussions on their conference calls.

Luckily, that morning at breakfast though, Lian surprised them all.

“If one of you can give me a ride to the airport on Friday morning, I would appreciate it,” Lian said simply. “I’ve booked a return flight already.”

Phil and Melinda shared looks of surprise, this being news to both of them, but Daisy was the only one who spoke. 

“Aww. Are you leaving already?” she asked disappointedly.

Lian chuckled. “I don’t believe your mother and father have enjoyed my visit quite as much as you have.”

Coulson almost choked on a sip of his orange juice, and Melinda rolled her eyes both at her husband and her mother.

**“** We don’t mind if you stay. You’re welcome anytime,” Melinda said flatly. She was beyond ready for her judgemental, hypercritical mother to leave once again, but it would be impolite to say so.

Lian waved her hand, dismissing the suggestion. “I know when I have overstayed my welcome.”

“Are you sure you have to go?” Daisy questioned. “I mean I’m going to miss learning to cook with you.”

Phil saw Lian smile warmly at Daisy and felt Melinda tense briefly next to him. He squeezed her knee gently, and could visibly see her relax just a bit at his touch. He didn’t know the full story of Melinda and her mother. All she had said was that Lian was absent for most of her childhood, and when she had been present, she mostly criticized Melinda, always pushing her to do more, to be better. It had to have been hard to grow up with a parent like that.

On the flip side of the token, her mother’s pushing had contributed to making Melinda who she was - a strong, independent, driven woman who could do anything she set her mind to. But Melinda’s heart? Phil knew that came from her father.

“Ah, Daisy. We will have plenty of time for me to visit again. I’m sure you and Melinda will want to get back to your-” Lian paused, looking to Melinda. “Well whatever you two do when I’m not here,” she said, patting Daisy’s hand.

Melinda stood abruptly, carrying her plate to the kitchen. 

“Why are you flying commercially?” Phil asked to change the subject. “I could’ve had someone from Shield fly you back.”

“Agent Davis was a superb pilot, but I don’t believe it is fair to continue to use Shield resources for personal reasons.”

“Shield owes us,” Phil said quickly. “I’ve died, been sent to an alternate plane of existence, Daisy has died, Melinda has died, all three of us were stuck in an alternative virtual world, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The least Shield can do is let us use a quinjet from time to time.”

Lian’s smile had been replaced by an unreadable expression, the family resemblance between mother and daughter becoming plainly obvious, and Phil wondered if he had spoken out of turn. It wouldn’t be surprising if Lian hadn’t been privy to the details of most of their time in Shield, but he got the feeling she also hadn’t known about Melinda’s death. He figured Melinda would’ve at least told her mother about  _ that  _ incident.

“I see. Had I known, I would’ve taken you up on that.” Lian gave them a wan smile and slid her chair back. “If you’ll both excuse me.”

Daisy watched Lian head to the kitchen, waiting until she was out of earshot to turn to Phil. “You’re gonna be in trouble,” she singsonged teasingly.

Phil sighed heavily, hoping she was wrong. “I thought Melinda would’ve told her mother about, ya know, her  _ death. _ ”

* * *

“Qiaolian, I need to have a word,” Lian said from behind her.

Melinda continued scrubbing the pan in the sink, trying to ignore her mother for a moment longer.

“I know you heard me,” her mother chastised.

Melinda sighed, but kept her focus on the pan. Her mother would keep talking if given the opportunity.

“You tell me  _ nothing _ , Melinda.”

“Like what?”

“You get married, I don’t know for months. You get pregnant, I don’t know for months. You  _ died,  _ Melinda. And I find out when your husband _ casually  _ mentions it at the breakfast table.”

Melinda finished rinsing the pan before turning to face her mother. “What do you want to know, Mom?” she asked, crossing her arms over her bump.

To her surprise, Lian looked a little taken aback by her abruptness. “Where did we go wrong, Melinda?” she asked after a moment.

Melinda stared at her mother in surprise. 

“When you were a baby, you only wanted me. Did you know that?” Lian asked.

May shook her head, wondering where this was going.

“If you had an earache or didn’t feel well, it was only me who could get you to stop crying. Your poor father tried to help, but if I left you for any length of time, you’d scream and cry until you were back in my arms.”

Melinda’s gaze softened slightly. She had never expected to have this conversation with her mother.

“Then I went back to work, going off on missions again when you were about two and a half or three, and I became a stranger to you. You turned to your father for everything after that, talked to him about boys, about school, ice skating, and martial arts. Everything I heard about your life came to me second hand through him.”

Lian exhaled shakily before continuing. “And then you met and married Andrew and for a brief moment, you turned to me again. Looking for approval or a mother’s input on your wedding, I’m not sure, but it was nice to have you back.” Lian sighed wistfully. “When you divorced Andrew, I was angry, I admit, but not because you divorced him, but because you also pulled away from me again. Perhaps I’ve been harder on you since then, I don’t know. As an agent myself, I understand your duty to Shield kept you from filling me in on much of your adult life, but to hear my child had died - the news delivered so nonchalantly over orange juice and pancakes - is not fair as your mother.”

Melinda stared dumbly at her mother, caught completely off guard by this direct show of honesty and quite frankly, the emotion in Lian’s voice. She laughed humorlessly, appreciating the irony of the situation. Both she and Lian thought it had been the other to cause the rift between them, when in reality they had both been at fault.

Her mother looked frustrated. “Did I say something funny, Qialolian?”

“It’s not really funny, but the irony is-” Melinda scoffed. “You thought I was the reason for the chasm between us and I thought it was you.”

Lian furrowed her brow. “How so?”

Melinda turned back to the dishes in the sink, scrubbing angrily at some stuck-on pancake batter, “For starters, you never called to check in on us, or say ‘hi, Melinda, I miss you.’ And then when you did come home, all you did was criticize me for my grades, for winning second place instead of first, for cutting my hair too short or funnily enough, for letting it grow too long. I was never quite up to your standards, was I?” she shut off the water as her mother came to stand at the counter next to her.

“Well, if that’s the way you saw it, then it’s no wonder you didn’t want anything to do with me,” Lian said softly. “I pushed you to be better, I admit, but only because I could see your potential from such a young age. I am sorry for making you feel like you were never good enough, Melinda. Because I have always been so proud to have you for a daughter.”

Melinda gave her a small smile. “Thank you.”

Lian tentatively put a hand on Melinda’s arm, “And I hope you know that I love as much now as I did when you were that little baby in my arms.” She reached the other hand toward Melinda’s stomach, pausing just long enough to wait for Melinda’s brief nod of permission before she rested her hand above her unborn granddaughter. “And I love  _ both _ my granddaughters, too.”

Melinda nodded and covered her mother’s hands with her own. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you guys that I died. Honestly, I hadn’t considered until recently how much time parents spend worrying about their kids.”

Lian chucked and pulled Melinda into a hug, which she readily returned, sighing heavily as she relaxed into her mother’s arms for the first time in years.

Melinda knew things weren’t going to magically be fixed from this one conversation, but at least it was a start.

* * *

The last couple of days of Lian’s visit, Melinda joined her mom and Daisy in the kitchen. Their freezer was already packed with food, but Lian just kept cooking. Bao, several varieties of dumplings,  Buddha’s delight, mouthwatering chicken, and the list went on and on.

Melinda chopped vegetables - the one kitchen chore she was allowed to do - while she watched Daisy learning to make mapo tofu that would soon be their lunch. 

“Mel, can you cut the tofu for us?” Daisy asked. “I don’t want to burn the pork.”

Daisy tossed her the package of tofu, and she gladly cubed it while Daisy kept an eye on the wok. 

“Tonight I want you to do the cooking for dinner, Daisy,” Lian announced as she handed Daisy some seasoning.

Daisy’s eyes went wide with surprise. “Wait. Like… by  _ myself?”  _

Lian chuckled. “I’ll help if you need me, but I want to see what you’ve learned. You choose the dish.”

“Ummm…” Daisy looked to Melinda, clearly hoping she would object.

Melinda shrugged, giving Daisy an encouraging smile. “I think you’ve got it, Dais.”

Lian scoffed. “ _ Of course  _ she does.” She put a hand on Daisy’s arm. “And plus, I will make dessert if you do the dinner.”

Daisy looked unsure, but ultimately agreed. “If you think I can do it, then I’ll give it a shot.”

“Mama, can you make bing tang hulu?” Melinda asked hopefully. “I haven’t had it in years.”

Lian chuckled. “You always did love tang hulu. I’ll see if I can find what I need at the store.”

“What’s that? Tang hulu?” Daisy asked as she took the tofu from Melinda to add to the wok. 

“Basically fruit and sugar on a stick. You’ll like it,” she said to Daisy.

Within a few minutes, Daisy had finished cooking the mapo tofu, and she and Lian worked on plating it up for the four of them as Melinda went to let Phil know that lunch was ready.

As expected, he was on a video call in his office, talking to Mack and a woman with short dark hair who she recognized but couldn’t quite place.

Phil beckoned her over, and she stood just off-screen, watching over his shoulder. 

The woman was speaking somewhat heatedly. “Coulson, I don’t know why he backed out, but unless we find a replacement before the summer, we will have to delay training of the operations students or either cut the number of cadets by 25%. Jones was our one option to teach several of those courses, and we haven’t been able to find anyone else qualified -”

Mack interrupted her. “That’s not true Diaz. We haven’t found anyone else  _ willing.  _ Coulson, did you ask May if she might-”

Now it was Melinda’s turn to interrupt. “Ask May what?” she asked, stepping into the frame.

Phil gave her an apologetic look. “No, Mack. I haven’t had the chance.” 

“May!” Mack said with a huge grin. “Long time, no see. How are you?”

“Fine, thanks, Mack,” she said propping on the desk. “How’re you and Yoyo?”

Diaz shook her head. “Sorry to cut short your reunion, but I’ve only got another couple of minutes. Agent May, I’m Gina Diaz. I’ve been working with Agent Coulson on setting up the Operations division of the new academy.”

It all clicked for Melinda. Diaz had been a year behind her in the Academy, and they had trained together once or twice. The woman was just as brusque now as Melinda remembered, and she knew Diaz would be great in leadership for the academy.

“Director Mackenzie was referencing a conversation we’d had about asking you to take over some of the course load next summer,” Diaz explained.

May’s eyebrows arched in surprise. “You want me to teach?”

Phil chuckled next to her, and she saw Mack hiding a smile as well. 

“Come on, May,” Mack said. “Why would you  _ not  _ want to teach a bunch of new cadets?” he teased.

Melinda smirked. “I can think of several reasons, Mack. The most obvious being that I’ll have a six-month-old when the term starts.”

Diaz sighed. “I’ve got a briefing to get to. Will you at least think about it, May? I’m lobbying for onsite childcare anyway. Several of the faculty we’ve hired for SciTech and Communications have children, and I’m sure more of the support staff will as well. It makes good business sense to have a daycare.”

“I’ll think about it,” Melinda agreed as Diaz signed off.

Mack was grinning happily. “I think you’d be great, May. Training the next batch of agents to be just as badass and fearless as you.”

Melinda leaned against Phil’s chair, putting an arm loosely around his neck. “Flattery will get you nowhere, Director Mackenzie.”.

“Come on, Melinda. You can't blame me for trying,” he said with a chuckle.

* * *

Daisy couldn’t believe she had cooked dinner. By herself.  _ From scratch.  _

True, it was just a basic stir fry with chicken, veggies, and noodles, but nothing was burnt and she had even managed to get the seasonings just right.

They were all seated around the dinner table when Daisy felt a strong kick to the ribs from her baby. She hissed as he hit a particularly tender spot where she had been kicked several times over the last few days.

Phil had reached for her, putting a hand on her shoulder worriedly. “Are you alright, Dais?”

She took a couple of slow deep breaths to steady herself before speaking. “Mmmhmm. He’s just kicking the hell out of my ribs this week, and I think they’re getting bruised.”

“After dinner, you should call Agent Simmons,” Lian said knowingly. “They may be broken, not bruised.”

The three of them all turned to stare at Lian. “Surely a baby can’t break bones,” Daisy said skeptically.

“It’s a known complication during pregnancy. Melinda cracked one of my ribs when I was pregnant with her,” Lian said matter of factly.

Melinda looked to Daisy, the worry evident in her eyes.

“Could this be related to your powers still being on the fritz?” Coulson asked. “I mean you’ve broken and cracked bones before when your powers were uncontrolled.”

Daisy thought it over for a moment, considering if that could be the problem. Ever since Simmons had readjusted her inhibitors, she had been feeling much better and she had only used her powers a handful of times. Plus when she’d had issues with her powers in the past, she had only gotten hairline fractures in her arms and hands, never anywhere else.

“Nah. I’m willing to bet it’s just this little guy.” She put a hand on her belly as she tried to give Phil and Melinda a convincing smile. “Buuuut, I’m still gonna call Simmons after dinner and see if I need to get a scan on the rest of my bones or something,” she added, seeing the unconvinced looks on their faces.

* * *

As it turned out, Simmons did want Daisy to come in first thing in the morning for an MRI to see if her rib was indeed cracked, and more importantly to double-check if she had any other fractures they didn’t know about.

The four of them piled into Melinda’s SUV in the predawn light, driving Lian to the airport on their way to base. Whether it was the early hour or new worry they were all experiencing over Daisy’s newest potential pregnancy complication, they all rode in silence for most of the journey.

She could see the square set of Melinda’s shoulders in front of her and glance toward Coulson in the rearview mirror revealed the telltale deep furrow between his brow that proved he was just as tense as May. After a second, Phil moved one of his hands from the steering wheel and offered it to Melinda. Daisy could see some of the tension fall from May’s shoulders as she intertwined her fingers with Phil’s and they exchanged small tense smiles.

Daisy knew they were worried about her, and she was glad she had these two in her life - they loved her so, so much and she was grateful for them every day. But she also missed Lincoln every time she saw May and Coulson like this. 

She still mourned him and what they could’ve been. She had come so close to having someone to share her life with, to hold her as they fell asleep at night, to make stupid jokes with as they watched corny tv shows, to share in the excitement of her pregnancy the way Phil did with Melinda. She couldn’t even count the number of times she had walked into a room and seen the two of them together holding hands, or resting a hand on the other’s back, or May tucked under Coulson’s arm as they watched a movie. 

Daisy wasn’t jealous of them per se, but she was wistful for a life she could’ve had.

They pulled into the airport at long last, and Phil parked in the drop-off lane before hurrying to get a luggage cart for all of Lian’s bags while the rest of them filed out of the car.

Lian came around to the passenger side of the car and pulled Daisy down into a hug. “Now you’re going to call me when you’re ready for me to visit again, right?”

“Yep,” Daisy said with a grin after Lian released her. “And after this little guy makes his grand entrance, I’ll be inviting you to visit us for sure.”

Lian smiled. “Good, good. And you’re going to keep practicing cooking?”

“Yep again. I’ll keep you updated on how it’s going.”

Lian pulled her close again. “Maybe you’ll be able to teach Melinda a thing or two, huh?”

Melinda scoffed from next to them, crossing her arms over her bump. “I heard that, Mama,” she said teasingly.

“I wasn’t trying to hide it, Melinda,” Lian said with a smile as she hugged her daughter. “You have many talents, but cooking is not one of them, my dear.”

Daisy watched them curiously. She wasn’t sure what happened between Melinda and Lian in the last few days, but they’d been acting weird. Well… weird for them anyway. They were being genuinely nice to one another - not the fake civility they had had earlier in Lian’s trip. Not that Daisy was complaining. She thought Lian was great, but she also knew Lian and Melinda had a somewhat strained relationship. 

“Got the last cart for you, Lian,” Phil announced as he joined them once again and rushed over to start unloading bags from the back of the SUV.

“Careful with that bag, please, Philip. It’s got my good cookware in it,” Lian called over her shoulder.

“Yes, ma’am!” Phil answered as he gently placed her carry-on suitcase on the cart.

Lian turned back to Melinda and switched to Mandarin. “ _ I like him, Melinda. You picked well.” _

_ “It was mostly luck. I think the universe owed me a few favors, and in the last few months it has definitely been paying them out,”  _ Melinda answered, as she looked to Phil and Daisy fondly.

“ _ Are you nervous, Qiaolian? To have the baby?”  _

_ “For the birth? Not really.”  _ It was raising the baby that worried her.

Lian understood the words left unspoken and squeezed her hand gently. “ _ You’ll be a good mother. I see it already when you’re with Daisy.” _

_ “Daisy was an adult when I met her. She just needed a little push in the right direction.” _

Lian scoffed.  _ “She may have been, but Daisy loves you like you’re her own mother. You’ve already learned from my mistakes - you’re there for her when she needs you, you make sure she knows you love her. That’s all that really matters in the end.”  _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to Zi for helping me with the dishes that Lian teaches Daisy to cook! I actually made the mapo tofu myself this past weekend because it sounded so good. And y'all. Let me just tell - if you like spicy food, then google it and make this dish! It was amazing!!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long drought without updates. Hope you guys enjoy!
> 
> \--  
> Also, my best friend is _very_ pregnant with her third kid right now. Some of the events in this chapter were inspired by things that have happened to her.

“Well, Daisy,” Simmons said with a sigh. “Your ribs all look fine, but you've got several hairline fractures in your metacarpals- the bones in your fingers.” Jemma pulled up an image on her computer screen and pointed out the dark fractures in Daisy’s bones. “It looks like there are even a couple of possible ones in your right wrist, but they’re smaller.”

Daisy looked down at her hands, flexing her fingers. “I haven’t noticed any pain or anything in them, though. How can I have fractures without realizing it?”

“They look like the stress fractures you had before- after you first went through terrigenesis.” Simmons pulled up another, older scan and showed the similarities. “And you’ve had no visible bruising? What about weakness or loss of sensation in your hands and arms?”

Daisy shook her head. “Nothing.”

Jemma sighed in frustration. “This makes no  _ sense,”  _ she said, putting a hand to her forehead and rubbing it absently.

Daisy squinted at the films on the computer screen. “What the actual fuck is happening to me, Jemma?” she asked shakily before burying her face in her hands. If Jemma was worried, then that never bode well.

“Simmons, what’s the plan?” May asked tensely as she put a comforting arm around Daisy’s shoulders.

Jemma looked as confused as Melinda had ever seen her. “I have a few ideas, but honestly, May? It’s a best guess, take a shot in the dark situation.”

Melinda kissed the top of Daisy’s head, noticing the nervous tremors wracking her body, then asked, “What’s your best guess, then?”

“For starters, I want to run labs. I’ll contact your doctor’s office to get your baseline results to compare. See if you’re hypocalcemic or deficient in any other vitamins or anything.” Jemma sighed again. “Daisy, as much as I know you don’t want to, I think we’re going to have to shut off your powers for the time being since this is likely related.” 

Daisy nodded. “Whatever you think.”

“Fitz and I have put together what we feel is a viable option for your powers, but I have to warn you, Daisy, it’s not going to be fun and will require minor surgery.”

Melinda scoffed. “How minor?”

Jemma looked from May and Daisy on the couch to Phil standing propped against the wall. “We’d attach a sensor of sorts to a nerve in your neck-”

“That sounds more than minor, Simmons,” Phil said worriedly.

May had to agree. “What are the other options if we don’t do this?”

“In all likelihood, May, I imagine Daisy’s calcium is low, as can easily happen in pregnancy and therefore making her bones break more easily. Pair that with her unusual power problems and a history of broken bones related to those powers, and it’s… worrying to say the least.”

“Do it,” Daisy said with a sniff. 

“Daisy,” Melinda said warningly. “We need to hear the risks.”

“Jemma, if I don’t have this implant or sensor or whatever, I could potentially keep breaking my bones with whatever the hell is going on?” Daisy questioned.

“In all likelihood, that’s exactly what will happen, and since you haven’t even noticed these fractures or any pain while using your powers, I’m worried how far this might progress before you  _ do _ notice any symptoms.”

“And do we know if I could hurt the baby or May or Coulson without knowing or meaning to?”

Simmons sat back in her chair, considering her answer. “It’s within the realm of possibility, yes.”

Daisy nodded. “That’s all I needed to know then. When can we do it?”

“Tomorrow if you’d like,” Jemma said kindly. “We’ll run labs while you’re here and do the procedure first thing in the morning.

* * *

Daisy was up in the middle of the night, worrying about the procedure. She had made herself a cup of tea before she remembered Jemma had told her not to eat or drink anything after midnight.

She was just about to pour the tea out when she heard, “I’ll drink it.” 

It was May.  _ Of course _ it was May.

“It’s already got sugar in it, Mel. You won’t like it.”

Melinda wrinkled her nose in disgust. “Never mind then.”

Daisy grinned and poured the tea down the drain. “Why are you up?”

She shrugged. “Same as you, I expect.”

Daisy snorted. “What? A baby doing a synchronized swimming routine at 3 a.m. and then crying about a surgery that may or may not fix me?” She wiped away fresh tears that had sprang to her eyes. All these damn hormones on top of her already spent emotions meant she had cried for most of the last 12 hours since Simmons had told her she needed an untested procedure.

“You want to talk about it?” May asked. “Or do you want to be distracted?”

Daisy wiped at her eyes once again. “Distraction, please. If I talk about it, I’ll just keep crying.”

Melinda led her to the living room and sat her on the couch before she pulled out Daisy’s favorite blanket for them to share. Mel was such a mom already.

“So, Dais,” she began after tossing the blanket over them. “You haven’t mentioned any baby names yet.”

That brought a small smile to Daisy’s face finally. “Neither have you and Phil.”

“Ah. Touche.” Melinda chuckled.

“Do you guys have any ideas?” Daisy pressed, hoping for some info. 

Melinda laughed this time. “Actually, we’ve hardly discussed it.”

Even in the dim light of the room, Daisy could see Melinda was holding something back. She decided to press a little more to see if she could get an answer. “But you have ideas?”

Melinda arched one eyebrow, and Daisy knew she would cave if pressed again.

“Come on, Mel. You’re supposed to be distracting me, right?”

After an eye roll and a sigh, Melinda said, “I guess it won’t hurt to tell you a couple.”

Daisy gave her a big grin.

“Don’t think I don’t know I’m being manipulated though. I know exactly what you’re doing.”

“I have no idea  _ what  _ you’re talking about,” Daisy feigned.

“I’m sure you don’t,” May deadpanned. “Anyway,” she continued. “I think I’d like her to have something classic. Maybe Angela, or Sally.”

Daisy tried to keep her face neutral. Those options would never be on her list of potential names. “Oh. Those are definitely… uh… classic.”

“Or what do you think of Gertrude?” May asked excitedly.

“Uh…” Daisy knew her expression was giving away her disdain for the names.

“Calm down, Dais. I’m messing with you,” Melinda said with a chuckle.

“Oh my God,” Daisy laughed. “I was trying to think of a good way to tell you those names are horrible. She’d be made fun of every day in school!”

“No, I wouldn’t do that to her,” Melinda said as she ran a hand over her belly. “She’s already going to have the oldest parents of any other kid her age. I don’t want her to have any other reasons to be picked on. But I do kind of like Kate, though. That sounds kind of classic and modern, right?”

Daisy nodded. “I like Kate. Is it going to be short for Katherine or anything?”

Melinda shook her head. “I don’t think so. But again- Phil and I haven't even discussed names, so who knows what we will pick. Plus, we may pick something now and then change our minds once we meet her.”

“Any other ideas, Mel?” Daisy asked.

“Oh, no. It’s your turn to tell me a name next.”

Daisy rolled her eyes. “ _ Fine.  _ If you must know, I’m thinking about possibly naming him Owen.”

“Owen is a good name.”

“Either that or I was going to see if Phil would mind if I named my baby after him. What’s the ‘J’ stand for anyway?”

Melinda smiled at her. “James. And I think he would love that.”

Daisy wrinkled her nose as she thought about the name. “James Johnson sounds a little weird though. Maybe I can use Phillip as a middle name instead of using James?”

“I’m sure he’d be fine with that, too, Dais. But only if you want to. Don’t feel pressured.” Melinda yawned widely.

“Sorry for keeping you up,” Daisy said apologetically. 

“You’re not.” May grabbed one of the extra pillows nearby and used it to prop her feet up a little higher. “Couldn’t sleep if I wanted to.”

They sat in comfortable silence for a moment and Daisy realized Melinda hadn’t told her any other names. “You still owe me two more names, ya know.”

Melinda chuckled tiredly. “I also like Nora.”

“Oh, Nora is pretty! I  _ really _ like that one.”

“And I’m wondering if Phil might want to name her after his mother, Julie, but I don’t know if that’s something he’d want.”

Now it was Daisy’s turn to yawn. 

“You should go back to bed, Dais. Get another hour of sleep before we have to leave.”

She shook her head. “If you’re going to stay up, I’d rather stay with you.”

They both turned as they heard footsteps behind them. “You two can’t sleep either?” Phil said softly.

“Nah. We’re both stressed and pregnant, so sleep wasn’t in the cards for tonight.”

Melinda moved over, giving him room to sit between them on the couch. 

He sat, putting an arm around each of them and letting them each snuggle into his sides. Daisy was grateful he did so, as it put her at least a little more at ease. She watched him put his hand on May’s belly and give her a quick peck on the lips. 

“I’m so glad you two finally got together,” she said, fighting off another yawn. And she meant it wholeheartedly. They were her parents and had been basically since she first joined the team. But more than that, those two belonged together, not just as co-workers who also co-parented the younger agents, but they had known each other forever, been close friends for years. Yet, somehow it still took both of them being kidnapped and stuck in a virtual prison before they took a chance to admit how they felt for one another.

“Even if I do think you’re both dumb asses for taking so long,” Daisy teased, settling further into Coulson’s side, her head resting on his shoulder.

May rolled her eyes, as Phil gave an affronted “Hey!”

Daisy chuckled at their reactions. “Don’t get me wrong, I love you both. But twenty-five years of unrequited love is a little much don’t you think?”

Melinda practically snorted her laughter. “Eight.”

“Huh?” Daisy asked in confusion.

“Twenty-  _ eight  _ years,” Coulson clarified.

Daisy scoffed. “Ok, but that’s _ worse. _ You guys know it’s worse, right?”

May swatted her arm playfully. “But look, we’re making up for lost time now. We’ve been together for less than a year, and we’re married, bought a house, and are about to have a baby.”

“True,” Daisy agreed.

They sat together for a bit before Phil looked at his watch. “It’s time to get ready. We’ve got to get back to base soon.”

“Yeah, gotta fix your broken daughter,” Daisy said, her worry suddenly slamming back into her at full force.

* * *

Melinda was relieved when Simmons proudly announced that Daisy was fine, still sleeping off the sedation, but would be awake soon.

“I think this will fix her problems, May. I really do,” Jemma said happily. “Everything went splendidly.”

May pulled Jemma into a hug. “Thank you, Simmons. Can we go see her?”

Phil and Melinda sat by Daisy’s bed in the med bay talking softly until she woke a few minutes later.

“You guys are loud,” Daisy mumbled. “Finally sleeping and you’re ruining it.”

“Sorry,” they said in unison. 

Daisy’s eyes fluttered open, fixing May with a bleary stare. “Did it work? Am I fixed?”

Melinda tucked a lock of Daisy’s hair behind her ear. “Simmons thinks so. She said you’d be able to tell once you’re awake.”

“‘Kay, I’ll let you know once I’m awake,” she said, eyes drifting closed again.

May smiled, kissing Daisy’s temple. “You do that, baby. Get back to sleep, ok?”

Daisy nodded, eyes still closed, “Thanks, mom.”

* * *

Two weeks later, Jemma had given Daisy the all-clear. Her fractures on her arms were healing, she’d had no more issues now that her powers had essentially been turned off. Her only complaint was that she wasn’t used to being without her powers. Sure, she didn’t use them much now that she was out of the field, but it was nice to know they were  _ there. _

Jemma had told her it was probably for the best that they’d temporarily gotten rid of her powers. Simmons hadn’t said it, but Daisy knew she was worried how labor and earthquake powers would mix. Hell, she had been, too, if she was honest. She didn’t want to bring down a building while she was giving birth.

Daisy was feeling much better about everything as they left base- almost as if a weight had been lifted from all of their shoulders. Now they were going shopping for nursery furniture in celebration of Daisy being given a clean bill of health, and now she was in the back seat of Melinda’s SUV listening to her parents’ banter about where to go furniture shopping.

“Look, all I’m saying is that Ikea is going to have our best selection of cribs,” Melinda said.

“It’s not all about the  _ size of the selection,  _ Melinda.” Phil scoffed. “It’s about quality and quite honestly the ease of understanding the instructions when it comes time to assemble the furniture.”

Melinda laughed. “Excuses, excuses,” she teased. “Let’s go to your store first, and then when we don’t find something, we can go to Ikea. Like I said.”

“Wait. Ikea has food. Are we not going straight there?” Daisy asked. “Simmons kept me so busy I didn’t have a chance to eat breakfast.”

“See? Even Daisy thinks we should go to Ikea,” Melinda said with a smirk. 

Phil turned to look at Melinda, looking at her over the top of his sunglasses. “Come  _ on.  _ Wanting to go for the food and wanting to go for the furniture are two different things.”

Daisy grinned. “I’ll back whoever wants to feed their daughter first.” 

“Sell out,” Phil said to Daisy with a smile.

* * *

Needless to say, they only went to Ikea, having lunch in the food court before going to look at the baby furniture. 

All was going well, Melinda thought. Since the nursery was going to be shared for both babies, they had managed to compromise on a style of crib that everyone liked - after much deliberation of course.

Phil still grumbled about how it was going to be hell trying to put together the furniture, but he still got the staff to help him pull the boxes of furniture from the higher shelves in the warehouse.

Melinda and Daisy were standing out of the way, waiting on Phil to walk out with their cart, when Melinda noticed they were being watched by a middle-aged man from the opposite end of the aisle. When she fixed him with a glare, he dropped his gaze, busying himself by studying the price tag on the metal warehouse shelving.

She led Daisy away to a few aisles over, telling her she didn’t like the shifty look in the man’s eyes. May wasn’t sure if he was racist or just a creep, but either way, she was going to avoid him at all costs.

Phil paid for their furniture and left them standing in the loading dock with the cart while he went to get the car. After Phil disappeared among the rows of vehicles, a voice from behind them said, “Excuse me? Ma’am?”

May and Daisy both turned. “Is that the creep from earlier?” Daisy asked under her breath.

Melinda nodded.

The man came closer, and up-close Melinda could see he was approximately mid-40s, balding slightly on top. The plaid button-up and khakis made him look like a math teacher.

“Hi, I wanted to apologize about earlier. For staring at the two of you,” his eyes darted shiftily back and forth between May and Daisy.

May arched an eyebrow. “It’s fine,” she responded dryly, which made the man more determined to apologize.

“No, really,” he insisted, wringing his hands and taking a step closer. “I- I just. My wife left me when she was pregnant and I missed out on so much.” He shook his head, sighing wistfully. “I don’t mean to be too forward, but if it’s not too much to ask, can I feel one of your bellies?”

Daisy’s fingers wrapped around May’s wrist. Whether it was a warning or worry, Melinda couldn’t be sure.

“No. I don’t think so,” Melinda answered scathingly, fixing the man with a dark glare.

“I’m not a creep, I promise-” he stepped toward her, and she twisted away instinctively, keeping him away from her stomach and barely avoiding his outstretched hands.

Melinda heard a crunch followed quickly by a dull thud. As she turned back around, she saw the man was flat on his back, clutching at his face while blood poured from his broken nose, staining his shirt and jacket. Daisy stood over him, yelling a string of expletives that would make a sailor blush.

“Daisy!” Melinda hissed, pulling Daisy away from the man.

A crowd was starting to gather, drawn by Daisy’s shouts. 

“When someone says ‘ _ no,’ _ they mean it!” she yelled as Melinda pulled her further away. 

Daisy was seething. “I’m  _ fine _ ,” she said heatedly, twisting her arm free of Melinda’s grasp. 

The crowd seemed to be on Daisy’s side, a few of them even applauding her. 

An Ikea employee came scurrying over, apologizing to them profusely. “I am so, so sorry! We’ve never had someone try to accost another customer before. Would you like me to call the police?”

“Melinda? Daisy?” Coulson called worriedly as he joined them again, taking Melinda by the hand. “What happened?”

Melinda looked at Daisy, who was still breathing heavily but seemed to be calming down. “That guy was staring at us earlier, and then he approached us once you went to get the car.”

“And he tried to assault Mel, so I laid his ass out,” Daisy said through gritted teeth.

Phil’s eyes went wide. “Are you alright?” he asked worriedly, looking her over for any sign of injuries.

Melinda nodded and gave him a reassuring smile. “I’m fine.”

The Ikea employee was still with them. “Should I call the cops? He seems fine, but I thought you might want to file a report since he approached you two.”

Phil nodded. “If you don’t mind.”

That left the three of them, standing alone, slightly secluded from the other customers. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?” Melinda asked Daisy.

“Come  _ on,  _ May! He reached for you, and I reacted on impulse,” Daisy protested.

“I know. And I appreciate it.” Melinda grinned at her. “But so much for keeping a low profile.”

Phil was already pulling out his cell phone to call the base. “Mack is going to have to hope the media don’t get wind of Quake causing a scene in an Ikea parking lot. As far as the world is concerned, you’re still on Shield’s payroll.”

“I know, I know,” Daisy grumbled. “I’ve gotten Mack’s ‘Daisy, make sure you behave yourself when you’re out in public- you were just taken off every  _ Most Wanted  _ list in the world’ speech every time I’ve gone back to base.”

The police arrived quickly, taking statements from witnesses, and making notes. “Alright, ma’am,” one burly policeman said to Daisy. “All the stories match and he has no real case since you acted in self-defense. However, if you two want to file charges, you can.”

Melinda offered the officer her hand, shaking it in thanks. “No, I am willing to bet he learned his lesson.”

Once they were finally in the car, Daisy apologized. “I didn’t mean to cause a scene, it was just a reflex. Did you tell Mack I’m sorry?”

Phil chuckled. “Don’t worry. He was alright after I explained what happened. They’ll handle it if the press gets wind of it and block anything that might end up on social media.”

“I really don’t think they’ll have to worry anyway, Phil,” Melinda said. “What’s the headline going to be? ‘Superhero breaks random creep’s nose when he tries to assault her mother at local Ikea?’”

Daisy snorted from the back seat. 

“You know how the media is, Melinda.”

May rolled her eyes. “Yeah. I do.”

“By the way, why didn’t you take the guy out, Mel?” Daisy asked curiously. “Not that I minded, but it’s just not like you.”

Melinda shrugged. “I don’t know. I just turned away on instinct.” She rested a hand on her belly, rubbing her thumb back and forth absentmindedly. “I just wanted as much distance between us as possible.”

She could feel Daisy’s eyes on her, and Phil reached over and squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. 

“Been out of the field for less than a year, and I’m already getting soft,” Melinda joked. 

“Nah,” Daisy said, settling into her seat. “You’re only soft for three people- me, Phil, and my sister. My take? I think you’re used to putting yourself between your kids and any sort of threat. I can’t even count the number of times you’ve done that for me and FitzSimmons. It sort of makes sense that you’d turn around to keep yourself between that guy and the baby.”

Melinda smiled, realizing Daisy was right. That seemed like a more logical explanation than just being afraid. . “Yeah, you’re mostly right, but you forgot someone.”

“Wait, who?” 

Melinda turned around, rolling her eyes playfully at Daisy. “Did Simmons scramble something in your brain? Sure your reflexes are fine, but your memory is obviously lacking.”

Daisy was still staring at her blankly. “I don’t-”

May darted her eyes down at Daisy’s stomach, and realization dawned on Daisy’s face.

“Oh! Make that four people” she said, grinning at May. “You’re soft for four people, but to the rest of the world, you’re a total badass who is scary af.”

* * *

“ _ You and Daisy still up for visitors this weekend?”  _ Phil asked through the phone.

Melinda looked to the living room where Daisy was sitting cross-legged on the couch playing some video game. “Yeah. I think we’re both going a little stir crazy these days. It’ll be nice to see our friends outside of the base.”

Phil chuckled. “ _ Oh, and Mack and Fitz don’t know it yet, but I’m going to make them help me with the furniture.” _

Melinda jumped as Daisy yelled into her headset, saying something about spawns and kills followed by the sound of gunfire from the tv. She hated when Daisy played those kinds of games. They dealt with that enough in their work lives, Melinda thought there was no need to deal with it in their free time, too. 

“ _ Daisy playing her X-box again?”  _ Phil asked, chuckling.

“Unfortunately,” she responded dryly.

“ _ You can’t really blame her though. I don’t think she was quite ready to be thrust into a leave of absence. You and I planned for it.” _

May scoffed. “Phil, I hate to break it to you, but we did  _ not  _ plan for  _ most  _ of this.”

She could hear the smile in his voice when he responded, “ _ That’s true I guess. So much for our quiet retirement, huh?” _

“I don’t know who we thought we were kidding when we thought we could have some peace and quiet in our lives - you’re back in Shield, I  _ might  _ take that teaching job on a temporary basis. Plus we’re about to have a house full of noise-” she was interrupted by another frustrated shout from Daisy. “Scratch that - a house full of even  _ more  _ noise.”

Phil laughed on the other end of the line. “ _ I wouldn’t trade it for anything though, Melinda.” _

“Me either,” she said sincerely.

“Hey, is that AC?” Daisy called from the next room. “Ask him what time they’ll be home!”

* * *

Two hours later, Phil walked through the door, FitzSimmons hot on his heels. 

Daisy and Jemma hugged tightly before Daisy grabbed Fitz and added him to the mix. Phil on the other hand came straight to Melinda and kissed her deeply.

“Hello to you, too,” she said teasingly as he wrapped her in his arms. 

Phil chuckled. “I have got to stop leaving you. I miss you too much when I’m gone. Plus,” he paused putting a hand on the swell of her stomach. “I think you get bigger every time I come home.”

She arched an eyebrow. “I’d stop talking if you want to live to see another day.”

“Ok, what I mean is that  _ she  _ gets bigger every time I see you. Is that better?” he asked, eyes twinkling.

“Better,” she said with a nod and a smile. "But I miss you when you’re gone, too.”

Phil leaned in to kiss her again, and as they parted, Daisy let out an “Awww.” 

“You two are very sweet together, you know?” Simmons added, followed by a soft, “Yeah,” from Fitz.

May rolled her eyes, but she was smiling at them as she did. 

“Anyway, speaking of people being cute, I think Fitz and I set the date of our wedding,” Simmons said matter of factly.

Fitz nodded his agreement. “Yeah. And it’s going to be soon if that works for you lot?”

“How soon is soon?” Phil asked, putting a hand on Melinda’s back.

“Well, we were thinking next month. The 14th,” Simmons replied.

Daisy scoffed. “That’s less than a week before my due date.”

Simmons gave Daisy an apologetic look. “I know, and I’m sorry. But it’s the only time our families could come from the U.K., Daisy. Otherwise, I wouldn’t ask you to be my maid of honor and stand in front of a crowd while you’re nine months pregnant.”

“It’s fine,” Daisy said resignedly. “I’ll muddle through. But I’m not wearing a dress in an ugly color. You’d better pick something cute.”

* * *

Mack and Yo-yo arrived a few hours later, just in time for dinner. 

“Sorry, we’re late, but Davis and Piper were late reporting from their mission, and we couldn’t leave until after their debrief,” Yo-yo explained as she hugged everyone in turn. “I’m sure you understand, Coulson.”

They all ate dinner crowded around the dining table as they had done many times before, enjoying one another’s company, chatting about the state of Shield, and getting updates on the new academy.

True to his word, after dinner Phil made Fitz and Mack join him upstairs to put together all the furniture in the nursery. Two cribs, a changing table, a small bookcase, and a dresser were going to hopefully be assembled before the end of the weekend.

“Do you think they’re ok up there?” Elena asked after a loud thud shook the ceiling.

Melinda shook her head. “Better not put a hole in my ceiling,” she muttered. “We finally got rid of the construction crew.”

Daisy and Simmons chuckled, and they all turned their attention back to their conversation. 

“What else do you both need for the babies? Anything we can get for you?” Simmons asked.

Daisy shook her head. “I mean, you can get whatever you guys want, but we’ve got boxes and boxes of the basics. Everything is still packed away in boxes in Phil’s office until the nursery furniture gets put together. Then we’re going to start putting things away next week.”

Melinda looked to Jemma. “What about you and Fitz? Are you two moving off base? Need anything for a housewarming gift?”

“Oh, no. Not right away at least.” Jemma said with a wave of her hand. “I am actually considering taking Coulson up on his offer to teach part-time at the Academy. Split my duties with the Academy and my current position in Shield.”

“Really?” Daisy asked in surprise.

Simmons nodded. “I think it’d be fun to be a teacher - educating the next batch of agents. Teaching them how to be well-rounded agents instead of just dealing with the science aspects of their jobs.”

May chuckled. “Well, I guess you all should know that Mack and Coulson have offered me a teaching position as well. And I think Phil is going to continue as head of the Academy for at least the first year or so.”

“Wait!” Daisy said in surprise. “This is all news to me! I didn’t know you were offered a job, Melinda.”

“Yeah,” May said with a small grin. “I was their first back-up choice. So, we’ll see.”

Elena nudged May’s arm gently. “You’ll be great if you take it. And actually, you were Mack’s first choice, but he was outvoted because you would have a newborn when it came to planning the curriculum and all of that. But now I think they’ve got that mostly taken care of already, don’t they?”

May shrugged. “Hell if I know. Phil and I are supposed to talk about it this weekend.”

Fitz had snuck down the stairs behind them. “May? I had a mishap with a hammer, and Coulson sent me down here to ask for a band-aid?”

* * *

Phil tiptoed into their bedroom, shutting the door quietly behind him. Melinda had gone to bed earlier than the rest of them and he didn’t want to wake her - he knew she was exhausted. 

She was in the middle of the bed, laying on the edge of his pillow, and he laid gingerly on the bed, trying to keep from jostling her.

“It’s alright, Phil. I’m still awake,” she said without opening her eyes.

Coulson rolled to face her, and she shifted, tucking her face into his chest. He kissed the top of her head and wrapped his arms around her and rested one hand on her belly. “She’s really active tonight isn’t she?” he whispered.

Melinda chuckled sleepily. “Why do you think I’m still awake?”

He pressed another gentle kiss on her head. “I’m sorry you’re not getting much sleep.”

She sighed, “I see why people usually get pregnant in their 20s and 30s, not their 50s.”

“Because you don’t sleep much?”

“Because it’s fucking hard. All of it. Physically. Emotionally. It takes a toll.”

Phil was surprised to hear Melinda talk like this. She wasn’t usually one to complain. “I’m amazed by your strength every day, Melinda.”

Even though her face was hidden, Phil knew she was smiling as she said, "You’re just saying that because you’re afraid I’ll kill you for knocking me up.”

“I would  _ never,”  _ he said, feigning offense.

She snorted. “You know, I’ve heard that some pregnant women have killed their husbands and gotten away with it because of the hormones.”

He laughed softly. “I’m not too worried, Mel.”

Melinda hummed thoughtfully. “You’re right. Who would I get to rub my feet if I killed you?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, look. I _had_ a plan for why Daisy's powers were going haywire. Really, I did. But ya girl does not use outlines and I straight forgot what that plan was. So please don't hate me if you think the reason in this chapter was lame or lacking in some way. I'm just dumb and forgot what my plan was. When all is said and done though it really isn't super important to the story, so it's all good. 
> 
> Oh! And next chapter, I'm so excited to introduce you guys to an original character who will be a love interest for Daisy! I hope you guys will like the character as much as I do!


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We are coming down to the wire guys, gals, and non-binary pals! Two chapters left after this! (And maybe a short epilogue, we will see.)  
> \--  
> In the notes of last chapter, I promised you guys an O.C. love interest for Daisy, and now it's time to introduce you to them briefly in this chapter!

The next few weeks passed relatively uneventfully. Melinda and Daisy had gotten the nursery decorated; washed piles of blankets, clothes, and burp cloths; and put away stacks of books and boxes of diapers. It was all coming together nicely.

What was more difficult for both of them however, had been finding something to wear for FitzSimmons’ wedding. In the end, Daisy had settled for a v-neck dress with a floor-length A-line skirt in a deep forest green. The color complimented her skin tone and dark hair well. As for the fit, it was comfortable, but looked formal enough that she would look like a real maid of honor.

The day of the wedding finally arrived, and Phil, Melinda, and Daisy had gotten a late start to the day, and were scrambling to get out the door on time.

“Don’t worry, I’ll do my makeup in the car!” Daisy yelled as she finished curling her hair, tousling it with her fingers to add some volume. “Mel, I’ll need you to zip my dress in about two minutes and then I’m ready!”

Melinda came through the door almost immediately, somehow with her makeup expertly done, hair in soft curls, and wearing a simple knee-length burgundy dress with a small zigzag pattern of sequins across the sheer, quartered sleeves. 

“Ok, two things,” Daisy said as she took her dress off the hanger. “One- you look  _ hot-”  _ she paused, to strip out of her t-shirt and leggings. “And two- how did you get ready so fast? I saw you like 15 minutes ago, and you had no makeup, your hair was completely straight, and you were in a sweatshirt and leggings.”

May chuckled as she started zipping Daisy into the dress. “Field agent for the better part of two decades, remember? Had to be in cover in 10 minutes or less most of the time.” The zipper caught when she was within a couple of inches from the top.

“Jesus, Melinda. Don’t pull me over trying to zip the dress,” Daisy hissed as she grabbed the back of a chair for balance.

“Sorry. It’s not zipping the rest of the way.” 

Daisy shifted her arms pulling the fabric toward May, giving her a bit of leeway to finish zipping.

“Got it!” Melinda said after another moment of tugging at the zipper. “Is it too tight?”

“Tighter than when I bought it, but it’s not too bad.” Daisy looked down at her chest. “I think my boobs are the problem. Did they get bigger?”

Melinda chuckled. “No offense Daisy, but I haven’t been looking that closely at your chest.”

“Well, can you look now and see if the dress looks okay or if it looks trashy?”” Daisy asked worriedly, trying to tuck her breasts further into the halter top of her dress.

“I think you’re fine. As long as you don’t feel like you’re about to burst a seam or anything.”

Daisy met Melinda’s eyes in the mirror. “Oh my God,  _ why would you even say that _ ? That’s the last thing I need to think about when I’m going to have to stand in front of a crowd!”

Melinda grinned. “You’ll be fine, Dais. I was just teasing.”

“I’m leaving in two minutes with or without you both!” Phil called from downstairs. “I’m not showing up late!”

Daisy grabbed a jacket, her shoes, and her makeup bag, and they were out the door and jumping into the car.

“Look, Phil. We’re on time!” Daisy said breathlessly.

He glanced at his watch. “ _ Barely.” _

They rode the hour or so to the venue listening to the radio, Daisy spending the first half of the trip applying her makeup. 

“By the way, Phil. I like the suit. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you in one,” Daisy said.

Melinda twisted in her seat to face Daisy. “Did you see the tie? I bought it for him.”

“Nuh-uh. What’s so special about it?”

Phil chuckled, lifting the tie over his shoulder for Daisy to see from the backseat. “It’s got Captain America shields embroidered on it.”

“And, the embroidery matches the color of my dress,” Melinda added proudly. 

* * *

The ceremony was short and sweet. Daisy, and Elena had stood as Simmons’ bridesmaids, while Mack, and one of Fitz’s friends from the academy were the groomsmen.

FitzSimmons shared a first dance as a couple, and then cut the cake before making an announcement for everyone to help themselves at the buffet.

Before Phil and Melinda had a chance to get in line for food, Fitz and Jemma cornered them, Jemma asking Coulson to dance with her, while Fitz took May’s hand to lead her on to the dance floor as well. Melinda thought it was sweet that the young agents thought enough of them to dance with them as they had with their own parents. They had grown close on the Bus and in all the events that followed over the last few years.

“Thanks for dancing with me, May,” Fitz said as they made their way around the dance floor. “I know you’re not a big fan of dancing.”

Melinda chuckled. “It’s only because it’s your wedding day. Otherwise, I’d  _ definitely _ sit this one out.”

“I know, but Jemma and I, we really wanted to do this with you and Coulson. You two have saved our asses more times than we can count,” Fitz said with a smile. “You two are like a second set of parents to us both.”

Melinda couldn’t help but to smile back at Fitz’s kind words. “We think the world of you Bus kids. And Mack and Yo-yo.” The last notes of the song faded out and Melinda pulled Fitz into a hug, kissing his cheek as she did. 

Fitz hugged her back tightly. “We love you, May,” he said as they parted, walking off the dance floor together. “And even if we’re on our honeymoon, you’re going to call once you have this kid, right? Jemma has already made Daisy swear to let her know the  _ second  _ she goes into labor.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll get a photo or a video call if you’re still on your vacation,” May said with a grin.

* * *

“And now the newlyweds would like to invite all the other couples to the dance floor to join them for the next song!” the DJ called.

Phil looked hopefully to Melinda.

“ _ No _ .”

“Come on Mel, just for one slow song?” he pleaded. “You danced with Fitz, why not your husband?”

“You should,” Daisy said from behind them, obviously having returned from her quest to find the cake given the overflowing plate in her hands. “We know you don’t actually hate dancing, you know.”

May raised her eyebrows. “And what gives you that impression?”

“Go dance with your husband and maybe I’ll tell you,” Daisy teased as she eased herself down into her chair.

May glanced at the dance floor filling up - nearly everyone in attendance had a significant other they couldn’t wait to slow dance with. Their table had already emptied, leaving just the three of them seated. “No, I think I’d rather stay with Daisy.”

Daisy, who had just taken a large bite of the wedding cake, gave a muffled, “What?” before she chewed quickly and continued. “I’ve got my wedding date right here,” she said pointing to her plate. “I’m fine for five minutes while you guys go dance.”

Melinda looked from Phil’s pleading face on one side to Daisy who was focused on her cake on the other. “ _ Fine, _ ” she sighed. 

Phil winked at Daisy, grateful for her help. “See, Mel? Daisy was right- you don’t _ hate _ dancing.”

As they made their way towards the dance floor, May scoffed. “The only time I don’t  _ completely  _ hate dancing is with you.” 

Daisy watched them leave as she took another bite of her cake. She didn’t know if she was just really hungry or if the cake was just really good, but she already wished she had gotten a second piece.

“Mind if I join you?”

She nodded her agreement and gestured to the chair next to her.

A tall, slender woman sat down next to Daisy and offered her hand. “Hi, I’m Nia Reese.”

Daisy took in her curly hair and gorgeous complexion, and thought she looked vaguely familiar. “I’m…”

“Daisy Johnson,” Nia finished for her. “I know.” She paused briefly. “Wait, I’m sorry, that probably sounds creepy. Let me try again.”

A smile crept across Daisy’s face at the sight of the blushing young woman before her. (Which, who knew that at almost nine months pregnant she could make anyone blush?) But at least Daisy now realized why she recognized this woman- pictures of FitzSimmons from the Academy often featured her as well.

The more Nia spoke, the more pronounced her southern accent became. “Anytime Simmons and I catch up, we talk a lot about you- uh, oh. Goddammit, I really am talking myself into a corner here. I mean,  _ Simmons  _ talks a lot about you.”

“Wow. Great first impression,” Daisy teased lightly. “But it is good to know Jemma is the president of the Quake fanclub. I always suspected.”

Nia blushed harder.

“It’s fine, Nia,” she said, resting a hand reassuringly on Nia’s forearm. “Really,” she added with a smile.

“Ok, well, anyway, moving on… How is it that you’re stuck here alone while all the couples are on the dance floor?”

“Well,” Daisy gestured at her belly. “Soon-to-be single mom. Kind of difficult to date when you’re about to have a baby,  _ and _ you live with your parents.”

Nia chuckled. “Difficult is not impossible, though.”

Daisy hummed thoughtfully. “What’s your excuse for being alone tonight?”

She shrugged. “FitzSimmons promised it wouldn’t be all couples, but apparently they were almost completely wrong. The only other single people I see are old Academy professors, and I don’t feel like a lecture on why I should’ve stayed in Shield.” Nia rolled her eyes.

“So, you came to chat with the only other attractive young person here.”

“Exactly! See, you get it.” Nia raised her drink toward Daisy in acknowledgement. A moment passed and the two surveyed the crow and listened to the music. “May and Coulson are cute out there,” Nia said with a nod toward them.

Daisy saw them swaying to the music as they slowly circled the dance floor among the other couples, Melinda’s head on Phil’s chest, him occasionally kissing her forehead softly.

“I just want to find someone to look at me the way Coulson is looking at May. Is that too much to ask?” Nia asked with a sigh.

Daisy chuckled. “Tell me about it.” She had never had someone who looked at her that way either. She’d love to have something like May and Coulson had.

The song came to a close, and another love song began, though this one was faster and more upbeat.

“You want to dance, Daisy?” Nia asked suddenly.

“What? No, I’m ok.”

“Come on. I bet you’re a great dancer.”

Daisy grinned and rested a hand on her belly. “Yeah, well when I’m not twice my usual size.”

“Look, we might as well have some fun, but if you don’t  _ want _ to…” Nia teased.

Daisy knew she was being coerced but agreed anyway. “Oh, what the hell. But only one dance. And you’ll owe me a piece of cake when we’re done,” Daisy replied with an even bigger smile.

“Fair enough,” Nia nodded and led the way, gently pulling Daisy along behind her until they had made their way to the edge of the dance floor. 

“Ready?” she asked as she put an arm around Daisy’s waist and smiled happily.

After a few seconds, it was obvious that Nia was leading as Daisy allowed herself to be spun and twirled, and Daisy was glad that Nia was such a good dancer. Nia was also kind and thoughtful enough to slow down and pull Daisy in close when she thought Daisy was in need of a quick breather before they would be off again.

Daisy didn’t even notice the song drawing to a close until Nia had pulled her back in from one last spin and held her close as the final couple of notes of the song came to an end. Standing here under the strands of soft lights, wrapped in the arms of a beautiful woman who didn’t mind that she was pregnant, who was kind and funny and thoughtful, Daisy realized Nia was someone special. 

They stood flush against one another – well, as much as they could be with Daisy’s baby bump in the way – both slightly out of breath and giddy from their dance. Suddenly all the background noise seemed to fade to silence, as Daisy lost herself in Nia’s hazel eyes, their green and gold flecks reflecting the string lights above, seeming to draw her further and further in.

Daisy thought Nia was going to kiss her, but unfortunately, they were interrupted before she found out if she was right.

A loud voice echoed around them from the speaker system. “Can you all take your seats please? Except for the maid of honor and the best man – it’s time for your toasts for the newlyweds.”

Daisy and Nia let go of one another reluctantly.

“It was nice to meet you, Daisy,” Nia said as she reached in her blazer pocket, pulling out a business card which she handed to Daisy. “I know you’ve got responsibilities here tonight but call or text me if you want to hang out or get dinner sometime.”

She grinned. “I would very much like that, Nia.”

* * *

Melinda couldn’t believe she let Phil drag her onto the dance floor. She had just danced with him at her birthday a few months ago. Now she was eight months pregnant and wanted nothing less than to be on her feet on the dance floor for the second time that night.

Phil was holding her close and she had an arm looped around his neck, her other hand resting on his chest. 

“You know, Mel?” he asked in her ear. “I think this song might be about us.”

She leaned back, studying his face. His eyes were sparkling in the soft lighting. “I didn’t even think you knew this song, Phil.”

“Of  _ course,  _ I know this song.” The second verse of the song began, and he sang along, still swaying softly with her. “ _ Well I found a woman, stronger than anyone I know. She shares my dreams, I hope that someday I'll share her home. I found a love, to carry more than just my secrets. To carry love, to carry children of our own _ .” With the last line, he rested a hand gently on her belly.

Melinda smiled, cupping his cheek in her palm. “Maybe you’re right about this song.”

He kissed her forehead, and kept singing. “ _ We are still kids _ -”

“Well, maybe not  _ that _ line,” she deadpanned, earning a smile from him as he continued.

“ _ But we’re so in love, _ ” Phil’s arms wrapped around her again, and she rested her head against his chest, listening to him sing to her. 

As they spun slowly, Melinda noticed a pretty young woman had joined Daisy at the table, and from what she could tell from this distance, they were chatting happily. Daisy’s hand rested lightly on the other woman’s arm for a brief moment, and Melinda couldn’t help but smile. She hadn’t seen Daisy so happy in a long time. She was curious to see where this might go, but she knew Daisy would tell them eventually if it was anything important. 

Instead of continuing to watch Daisy, she shifted her focus back to Phil, who had kissed her forehead again in a musical interlude.

“ _ Baby, I’m dancing in the dark, with you between my arms. Barefoot on the grass, listening to our favorite song. I have faith in what I see _ ,” Phil tipped her chin back gently before kissing her on the cheek. “ _ Now I know I have met an angel in person _ ,” his lips brushed against hers softly.  _ “I don’t deserve this, you look perfect tonight, _ ” his voice broke on the last line, and she swallowed hard to force down a lump that had suddenly appeared in her throat.. 

She wasn’t one to cry often, but hearing Phil singing her a love song, under the soft lights in the reception hall, and seeing his love for her etched across his face and shining in his eyes, was more than enough to bring her almost to tears.

They kept swaying until the last note of the song, their foreheads resting against one another until the next song started. 

Phil cleared his throat. “You up for one more , Mel? Or do you still want everyone to think you hate dancing?” he asked with a smirk.

This song, Melinda didn’t know, but Phil seemed to recognize the tune. It was a little more upbeat, and far less sentimental. 

He looked so hopeful she couldn’t turn him down.

* * *

May undressed, stripping off the dress she wore to the wedding and exchanging it for one of Phil’s old t-shirts. Even his clothes were getting tight on her these days. She sighed and crawled into bed, waiting on Phil to get out of the shower. Maybe he would go downstairs and make her some tea. Or get her some ice cream. Or better yet, maybe both.

She heard the faucet turn off and with a couple of minutes, Phil had opened the bathroom door, and was making his way toward the bed.

“Phil, before you get in bed, can you go get me some tea and some ice cream?” she asked, giving him her best puppy dog eyes.

“Do you really want ice cream after all the cake we ate?” he asked skeptically.

“ _ I  _ don’t.  _ The baby  _ does.”

He chuckled, sitting on the edge of the bed next to her. “Oh, I see.  _ The baby  _ wants tea and ice cream, huh?” Phil leaned over and kissed her gently.

Melinda smiled. “Yep. The baby.  _ She  _ wants ice cream.” 

Phil kissed her again. “And tea?”

“Oh, no. The tea is for me.”

With a laugh he agreed and was back in a few minutes with a pint of ice cream and a mug of her favorite tea. “Mmmm, thank you,” she said as she had her first spoonful of the ice cream.

Before she knew it, Phil was laying on the bed, resting his head on her belly and wrapping his arms around her. “Waiting on her to kick, aren't you?” she asked despite already knowing the answer.

“Of course, I am,” he said in a sing-song voice. “She always kicks when you have ice cream, Mel. Don’t you, baby?”

Almost on cue, their daughter tumbled around, getting a chuckle from Phil. “See?” he asked Melinda. “She just wanted to prove her daddy right. Didn’t you Eve?”

Melinda froze. “What did you call her?”

“Just testing out names. You obviously didn’t like _that_ one,” he teased.

Melinda chuckled. “Isn’t it a little too… _ Biblical _ ?”

“Yeah, probably.” He kissed her belly and looked up at her. “What do you have in mind?”

“Not anything Biblical. Or any version of naming her after Peggy Carter.”

Phil scoffed. “You really think I was going to suggest-”

“Tell me I’m wrong, Phil,” she said with a laugh.

“As a matter of fact,  _ Melinda,”  _ he said crawling up to sit against the headboard with her, “I was not going to suggest naming her after Peggy.” Under his breath, he added, “Not right  _ now  _ anyway.”

“Mmmhmm. I know you too well.” She offered him the last bite of ice cream, and he took it gladly. “We do need to come up with a name for her though,” she ran a hand over her belly where the baby was still kicking periodically. “Or at least narrow it down some.”

He nodded, and winced as he took a sip of her tea. “I keep thinking I’ll like that tea if I keep trying it.”

She snuggled against him, yawning widely. “It’s been almost thirty years. I don't know why you’d think you would suddenly like it.”

“Well, for your information, there was something _else_ I waited almost thirty years for, and that turned out pretty well for me,” he whispered before pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head.

Melinda hummed in amusement as she traced her fingertips across his chest. “I guess you’ve got a point there.”

* * *

The next morning Daisy knew she had to finally tell Coulson and May her secret. Not that she thought she had gone unnoticed last night. May was perceptive and sharp – hardly anything slipped by her, so she had likely figured everything out.

Coulson, however, sometimes he was completely oblivious. Unless May had told him, he probably had no idea.

She made her way downstairs, finding her parents at the kitchen table eating breakfast.

“Morning, Dais,” Phil greeted her from behind his newspaper.

Melinda skipped the pleasantries, obviously seeing the worry on Daisy’s face. “Something wrong, Daisy?”

She slid into one of the remaining chairs, “Can we talk for a second? There’s something I need to tell you guys.”

Coulson put down his paper and looked at her with a furrowed brow. “What’s up?”

“Ok, I don’t want to make a big deal of it because you guys might already know, and it’s really  _ not  _ a big deal. It’s just part of who I am, and I think you guys deserve to know. No, I said that wrong. I  _ want  _ you guys to know.”

May had a knowing smirk on her face, but Coulson had a confused and concerned look on his.

Daisy sighed heavily. “Ok, here goes... I’m bi.”

Melinda smiled happily at her as the furrow between Coulson’s brows deepened.

“Bi? Bi what?”

Melinda and Daisy both gave him confused looks.

“Bi _ -sexual,” _ Daisy clarified.

“ _ Oh _ ,” Phil said as he realized what she was saying.

Melinda was smiling at her again. “I knew that cake wasn’t really your date last night.”

Daisy could feel her cheeks starting to blush, but she returned May’s smile. This was going well. May and Coulson were the first of her Shield family she had come out to, and they were handling this really well. She figured they would, but it was nice to have that confirmed.

Coulson seemed to still be processing this news. “I’ve got to say, Daisy, I didn’t see this coming, but I’m happy you felt comfortable enough to tell us.”

May reached across the table and squeezed Daisy’s hand. “I’m proud of you, and I love you.”

“You knew already though?” Daisy asked.

Melinda shrugged. “Suspected.”

“I had no idea. I’m sorry I wasn’t paying attention,” Coulson said quietly.

“No, don't apologize! But really, weren’t all the keyboard smashes a giveaway?”

May almost choked on her sip of tea as she started laughing.

Coulson’s eyes darted between them. “Daisy, I don’t even know what a keyboard smash  _ is.  _ How would that give anything away?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I purposefully add a couple of Philinda fluff scenes to this chapter after I thought I was done writing this? Yes.  
> Do I regret it? Not in the slightest.  
> \--  
> Also, did I make Nia a southerner just because I have a thing for people with cute Southern accents? Yes, and I have no shame for doing so. My own accent isn't as strong as it used to be, but my Southern accent was never one of the cute ones. Just the one where I frequently said words like, "cain't," "y'ain't," "y'all'd've," and the list goes on and on. (Yes, we use triple contractions down here in Mississippi.) Though, I do still drop the "g" off the end of words, my accent has faded over time. That said, let me talk to my momma on the phone, or let something make me mad and that Southern will come right back like somebody flipped a switch.


End file.
